CEOS EO HANDBOOK – INSTRUMENT SUMMARY - TM -
Full Name Thematic Mapper Status No longer operational
Instrument Agencies USGS, NASA Maturity High Heritage - Operational
Instrument Type Imaging multi-spectral radiometers (vis/IR) Geometry Cross-track scanning
Instrument Technology High resolution optical imager Sampling Imaging
Data Access Open Access Data Format
Measurements and Applications Measures surface radiance and emittance, lands cover state and change (eg vegetation type). Used as multipurpose imagery for land applications. Declared no longer operational June 4, 2012.
Resolution Summary VIS - SWIR, 30 m; TIR: 120 m
[Best Resolution: 30m]
Swath Summary 185 km
[Max Swath: 185 km]
Accuracy Summary
Waveband Summary VIS - TIR: 7 bands: 0.45 - 12.5 µm
VIS (~0.40 µm - ~0.75 µm)
NIR (~0.75 µm - ~1.3 µm)
SWIR (~1.3 µm - ~3.0 µm)
TIR (~6.0 µm - ~15.0 µm)
Instrument Measurements
Measurements Overview
CategoryParameter
Albedo and reflectanceFraction of Absorbed PAR (FAPAR)
Earth surface albedo
Cloud type, amount and cloud top temperatureCloud imagery
Cloud cover
Landscape topographyLand surface topography
Multi-purpose imagery (land)Glacier topography
Fire fractional cover
Land surface imagery
Multi-purpose imagery (ocean)Ocean imagery and water leaving spectral radiance
Ocean colour/biologyOcean chlorophyll concentration
Radiation budgetShort-wave Earth surface bi-directional reflectance
Long-wave Earth surface emissivity
Sea ice cover, edge and thicknessSea-ice cover
Sea-ice surface temperature
Iceberg fractional cover
Iceberg height
Glacier cover
Snow cover, edge and depthSnow cover
Surface temperature (land)Permafrost
Land surface temperature
Fire temperature
VegetationNormalized Differential Vegetation Index (NDVI)
Leaf Area Index (LAI)
Vegetation type
Land cover
Thematic Links Global Climate Observing System Essential Climate Variables (GCOS ECVs)
ECVDescriptionProduct(s)ECV Inventory 3.0 Record(s)
Albedo click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Cloud Properties click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Fire click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FAPAR) click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Glaciers click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Land cover click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Land Surface Temperature click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Leaf Area Index (LAI) click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Ocean Colour click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Sea Ice click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Snow click here click here search ECV Inventory records
Instrument Missions
Landsat 4 - Landsat 4 (1982 - 1993)
Landsat 5 - Landsat 5 (1984 - 2013)