On December 19, 2012, USGS Director McNutt authorized the decommissioning of the Landsat 5 mission. Decommission procedures will begin in January 2013.
This is the end of an era for a remarkable satellite. We can celebrate the impressive achievements of all those who designed, built, launched, and operated this now 28-year old satellite as well as all who downloaded, archived, distributed, and analyzed the massive amount of data derived from it.
Landsat 5 had been expected to operate beyond the launch of the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (Landsat 8) satellite in February 2013. However, the recent failure of a Landsat 5 gyroscope introduced additional risk to ongoing operations. If either of two remaining gyroscopes fails, control of Landsat 5 would be lost and the spacecraft would have to be abandoned, posing a risk to other Earth-observing satellites in the same orbital path (including the upcoming Landsat 8).
The USGS reviewed all options for continued Landsat 5 operations and concluded that decommissioning procedures should begin next month. This is the earliest feasible opportunity to lower the spacecraft below the 705 km Landsat 8 orbit track. The USGS also considered the science value of the data currently being collected by Landsat 5. Given the diminished quality of the data since the satellite’s Thematic Mapper went offline in November 2011, the USGS concluded that continuing Landsat 5 imaging operations is less important than removing Landsat 5 from Landsat 8’s orbit track.
The USGS EROS Flight Operations Team will work closely with NASA personnel throughout a series of orbital maneuvers designed to gradually lower the spacecraft safely relative to other satellites and known space debris starting in mid-January 2013. Applicable procedures and policies will be followed to limit the generation of space debris from this mission.
Press release: http://www.usgs.gov/
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