EO·Atlas
OLI (Operational Land Imager)
Multispectral pushbroom optical imager, primary instrument on Landsat 8 (launched 11 February 2013). Built by Ball Aerospace under NASA contract; Ball acquired by BAE Systems on 16 February 2024. NASA owns the space segment; USGS operates the ground segment and distributes data at no cost. 9 spectral bands across visible/NIR/SWIR plus panchromatic and cirrus, 30 m GSD (15 m panchromatic), 185 km swath, 12-bit acquisition. Combined 8-day revisit with Landsat 9 OLI-2 underpins GLAD-L pantropical deforestation alerts and the Hansen Global Forest Change annual dataset.
OLI is the Operational Land Imager on Landsat 8, a multispectral pushbroom optical instrument with nine spectral bands, 30 m multispectral imaging, 15 m panchromatic imaging, and a 185 km swath.[1][2] Ball Aerospace built OLI for Landsat 8 under NASA's Landsat instrument program.[2] The sensor supports visible, near-infrared, shortwave-infrared, panchromatic, and cirrus observations for land imaging applications.[1][2] USGS distributes Landsat 8 data products for operational land monitoring workflows.[1]
| Methodology | Evidence | Mission | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vegetation-index mapping | Demonstrated | Landsat 8 | [1] |
| Multisensor spatiotemporal fusion | Capable | Landsat 8 | [3] |
Pricing not publicly listed by operator
Supply chain position
- Optical sun-glint surface imaging
Landsat 8 OLI has visible/NIR bands and 15-30 m reflective-band imaging suitable for opportunistic sun-glint exploitation when geometry and cloud conditions cooperate.
- [1]Landsat 8, USGS Landsat Missionsagency doc2026-05-25
- [2]Operational Land Imager, NASA Scienceagency doc2026-05-25
- [3]Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager Design, Characterization and Performancepeer reviewed2026-05-25
How to cite this page
Plain text
OLI (Operational Land Imager). EO-Atlas, SpectraWorks B.V., last reviewed 2026-05-25. https://eo-atlas.org/products/sensor/oli (CC BY 4.0)
BibTeX
@misc{eoatlas:products:sensor:oli,
title = {OLI (Operational Land Imager)},
author = {{EO-Atlas}},
publisher = {SpectraWorks B.V.},
year = {2026},
note = {Last reviewed 2026-05-25. CC BY 4.0},
url = {https://eo-atlas.org/products/sensor/oli}
}