WEBVTT FILE 1 00:00:00.533 --> 00:00:02.969 Soaring high above our home planet, 2 00:00:02.969 --> 00:00:06.106 Landsat 9 will provide critical data on how Earth is changing. 3 00:00:06.272 --> 00:00:10.010 Circling the globe every 99 minutes, 14 orbits a day, 4 00:00:10.010 --> 00:00:12.479 continuing decades of observations. 5 00:00:14.614 --> 00:00:16.282 The impact of the Landsat record 6 00:00:16.282 --> 00:00:18.585 is the sheer amount of information we’ve collected 7 00:00:18.585 --> 00:00:21.454 all across the world since 1972. 8 00:00:22.355 --> 00:00:24.758 And it is high-quality science-caliber data, 9 00:00:24.924 --> 00:00:27.961 enabling us to accurately track changes over time. 10 00:00:29.929 --> 00:00:32.132 Now, fifty years of Las Vegas expanding 11 00:00:32.132 --> 00:00:33.900 may be fairly simple to notice, 12 00:00:34.134 --> 00:00:36.736 but we can also observe short-term changes, 13 00:00:37.170 --> 00:00:38.571 like the growth of farm crops 14 00:00:38.571 --> 00:00:41.174 through a season in south central Kansas. 15 00:00:43.376 --> 00:00:45.745 With more than one Landsat satellite in orbit, 16 00:00:45.945 --> 00:00:48.581 plus the European Sentinel-2 satellites, 17 00:00:48.782 --> 00:00:50.750 we will get data several times each week, 18 00:00:50.750 --> 00:00:53.987 improving our ability to track crop health and more. 19 00:00:56.890 --> 00:00:58.725 The temperature measurements from Landsat 9 20 00:00:58.725 --> 00:01:02.529 will be used to calculate how much water was used by each farm field. 21 00:01:03.129 --> 00:01:05.231 The Central Platte Natural Resources District, 22 00:01:05.432 --> 00:01:07.700 like many throughout the western United States, 23 00:01:07.901 --> 00:01:12.172 relies on Landsat data to manage irrigation and increase water efficiency. 24 00:01:14.974 --> 00:01:18.711 Landsat 9 will also improve monitoring of coastal waters. 25 00:01:18.878 --> 00:01:21.915 The increased precision in data sent back from Landsat 9 26 00:01:21.915 --> 00:01:24.217 will allow finer distinctions in the levels 27 00:01:24.217 --> 00:01:25.518 of light reflected from water, 28 00:01:25.552 --> 00:01:29.022 making it easier to identify any pollutants that are present. 29 00:01:31.257 --> 00:01:33.393 Around the globe, growing population 30 00:01:33.393 --> 00:01:36.796 and expanding development result in higher amounts of runoff, 31 00:01:36.796 --> 00:01:39.566 damaging sensitive near-shore ecosystems. 32 00:01:39.933 --> 00:01:42.402 Landsat’s long history lets us look into the past 33 00:01:42.402 --> 00:01:45.071 to see the effects of land use changes. 34 00:01:48.241 --> 00:01:49.876 The consequences of climate change 35 00:01:49.876 --> 00:01:53.113 can also be seen in Landsat’s long data record. 36 00:01:53.413 --> 00:01:54.981 Scientists have used Landsat 37 00:01:54.981 --> 00:01:57.350 to track shrinking glaciers for decades, 38 00:01:57.417 --> 00:02:00.120 and Landsat 9 will continue that effort. 39 00:02:01.454 --> 00:02:04.190 The glaciers in the Himalayas are a key water source 40 00:02:04.190 --> 00:02:06.359 for billions of people in south Asia. 41 00:02:06.826 --> 00:02:08.294 Due to global warming, 42 00:02:08.294 --> 00:02:11.631 the increased meltwater collects in large lakes at high altitudes 43 00:02:11.631 --> 00:02:14.367 and poses a flooding risk to downstream villages. 44 00:02:14.734 --> 00:02:18.671 Landsat data is essential to monitor the growth of these lakes. 45 00:02:20.006 --> 00:02:21.341 Because of their location, 46 00:02:21.341 --> 00:02:23.776 glaciers are not easy to study in person. 47 00:02:23.910 --> 00:02:25.945 But Landsat’s view from space allows us 48 00:02:25.945 --> 00:02:28.047 to study glaciers all around the globe. 49 00:02:28.414 --> 00:02:30.583 Landsat 9’s improvements will make it easier 50 00:02:30.583 --> 00:02:32.919 to see features on the glacier surface. 51 00:02:32.919 --> 00:02:36.289 With that, we can better track how fast the glacier is moving. 52 00:02:36.956 --> 00:02:39.225 Knowing the velocity of the ice now, 53 00:02:39.225 --> 00:02:41.661 and how it has changed over the past decades, 54 00:02:41.661 --> 00:02:46.466 helps us forecast likely contributions to rising sea levels in a changing climate 55 00:02:50.637 --> 00:02:55.408 Landsat 9 joins Landsat 8 to continue the unbroken string of Landsat data. 56 00:02:55.975 --> 00:02:59.179 For five decades, we have relied on Landsat’s high-caliber, 57 00:02:59.179 --> 00:03:03.516 science-quality observations to understand and protect our home planet. 58 00:03:04.551 --> 00:03:07.720 And while Landsat 9 begins sending back data, 59 00:03:07.720 --> 00:03:10.023 we are already planning for the next evolution 60 00:03:10.023 --> 00:03:12.292 in the Landsat program. 61 00:03:13.393 --> 00:03:16.062 [on-screen text] Landsat is a joint program of NASA and USGS