Instrument | Status/ Accuracy | Instrument Description | Measurement Technology | Timeline |
ATLAS Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System | Operational
| Provide date on ice sheet height and sea ice thickness, land altitude, aerosol height distributions, cloud height and boundary layer height. | n/a |  |
C-Band SAR C-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar | Operational
| Marine core services, land monitoring and emergency services. Monitoring sea ice zones and arctic environment. Surveillance of marine environment, monitoring land surface motion risks, mapping of land surfaces (forest, water and soil, agriculture), mapping in support of humanitarian aid in crisis situations. | n/a |  |
ETM+ Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus | Operational
| Measures surface radiance and emittance, land cover state, and change (e.g., vegetation type). Used as multi-purpose imagery for land applications. | n/a |  |
OLI Operational Land Imager | Operational
| Measures surface radiance, land cover state, and change (e.g., vegetation type). Used as multi-purpose imagery for land applications. | n/a |  |
OLI-2 Operational Land Imager 2 | Operational
| Measures surface radiance, land cover state, and change (e.g., vegetation type). Used as multi-purpose imagery for land applications. | n/a |  |
PALSAR-2 Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar-2 | Operational
| Disaster monitoring, land monitoring, agricultural monitoring, natural resource exploration, global forest monitoring, potential use and interferometry. | n/a |  |
SAR (RADARSAT-2) Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) C band | Operational
| All-weather images of ocean, ice and land surfaces. Used for monitoring of coastal zones, polar ice, sea ice, sea state, geological features, vegetation and land surface processes. | n/a |  |
SAR (RCM) Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) C band | Operational
| All-weather, C-band data to support ecosystem monitoring, maritime surveillance and disaster management. | n/a |  |
SAR-L L-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar | Operational
| Land, ocean, emergencies, soil moisture, interferometry, others. | n/a |  |
S-band SAR S-band SAR | Operational
| SAR imagery for a range of applications including agriculture, maritime and forestry | n/a |  |
SGR-ReSI-Z Space GNSS Receiver - Remote Sensing Instrument - Z | Operational
| Ocean winds, waves, soil moisture, flooding, ice, snow | n/a |  |
PALSAR-3 Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar-3 | Being developed
| Disaster monitoring, land monitoring, agricultural monitoring, natural resource exploration, global forest monitoring, potential use and interferometry. | n/a |  |
P-Band SAR P-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar | Being developed
| Forest biomass monitoring | n/a |  |
L-band SAR (NISAR) L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) (NISAR) | Approved
| 3-year mission to study solid earth deformation (earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides), changes in ice (glaciers, sea ice) and changes in vegetation biomass | n/a |  |
GNSS Reflectometer (HydroGNSS) GNSS Reflectometer | Proposed
| | n/a |  |
LandIS Landsat Next Instrument Suite | Proposed
| Measures surface radiance, land cover state and change (e.g., vegetation type), and longwave termal infrared surface emittance. Used as multi-purpose imagery for land applications. | n/a |  |
L-Band SAR L-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar | Proposed
| Global observation of dynamic processes in the bio-, cryo-, geo- and hydrosphere. | n/a |  |
GEDI Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation Lidar | No longer operational
| This project will use a laser-based system to study a range of climates, including the observation of the forest canopy structure over the tropics, and the tundra in high northern latitudes. The instrument was placed into storage on the ISS on March 17, 2023, where it is expected to remain for 13-18 months, before continuing operations from 2024. | n/a |  |