EO·Atlas
OLI-2 (Operational Land Imager-2)
Multispectral pushbroom optical imager, primary instrument on Landsat 9 (launched 27 September 2021; USGS operational control from 11 August 2022). Built by Ball Aerospace (acquired by BAE Systems February 2024) under NASA contract. Same 9-band configuration as OLI on Landsat 8, but upgraded to 14-bit quantization (vs 12-bit), yielding 16,384 vs 4,096 grey levels and improving radiometric discrimination of dark targets including closed-canopy tropical forest. 30 m GSD (15 m panchromatic), 185 km swath, 705 km sun-synchronous orbit. With Landsat 8 OLI provides 8-day combined revisit, the operational base for GLAD-L pantropical deforestation alerts.
OLI-2 is the Operational Land Imager-2 on Landsat 9, a multispectral pushbroom optical instrument with nine spectral bands, 30 m multispectral imaging, 15 m panchromatic imaging, and a 185 km swath.[1][2] Landsat 9 launched on 27 September 2021, and USGS took operational control of the mission on 11 August 2022.[1] OLI-2 uses 14-bit radiometric quantization and supports visible, near-infrared, shortwave-infrared, panchromatic, and cirrus observations for land imaging applications.[2][3]
| Methodology | Evidence | Mission | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vegetation-index mapping | Demonstrated | Landsat 9 | [1] |
| Multisensor spatiotemporal fusion | Capable | Landsat 9 | [3] |
Pricing not publicly listed by operator
Compositional position
- Optical sun-glint surface imaging
Landsat 9 OLI-2 has the same practical visible/NIR reflective-band geometry needed for opportunistic sun-glint exploitation.
- [1]Landsat 9, USGS Landsat Missionsagency doc2026-05-25
- [2]Landsat 9 Instruments, NASA Landsat Scienceagency doc2026-05-25
- [3]Prelaunch Spectral Characterization of the Operational Land Imager-2peer reviewed2026-05-25