Landsat is a polar-orbiting
satellite at an altitude of approximately 22,500 miles or 35,786 km above
Earth, allowing it to capture imagery of the entire Earth's surface as it passes over different areas on a 16-day cycle.
Landsat offers high-ground
clarity (resolution) typically about 98 feet (30 meter) for optical and
thermal infrared bands and is excellent for detailed land surface
analysis and tracking changes over time.
Access to Landsat imagery is available as a free service through Google Earth. Both Google Earth and Google Earth Pro provide several useful features that allow users to visually monitor weather at a global scale, and it is available to access on the web or download.
GOES Satellite
In contrast, GOES orbits at a
much higher altitude (around 22,500 miles or 35,786 km) in a
geostationary orbit above the equator, meaning it remains fixed over a
particular area of Earth and provides continuous coverage. Its
higher altitude inherently limits its ground detail with visible and
near-infrared bands at about half a mile (1 km) and infrared bands at about
1.2-miles (2 km).
GOES has lower ground
detail than Landsat, but it has 16 separate sensors including Band 16
showing Carbon Dioxide, available on the main page of this website.
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