The Landsat 2 collection includes Landsat level 1 data for all sensors since 1972, as well as products based on the global level 2 surface temperature and reflectance scene from 1982 to present. This collection marks the second major reworking of the Landsat archive by the USGS. The effort leveraged recent advances in data processing, algorithm development, and data access and distribution capabilities to substantially improve Landsat data products.
Enhancements to Collection 2 include:
– Substantial improvement in the absolute accuracy of the geolocation of the global ground reference dataset which improves interoperability with the European mission Copernicus Sentinel-2
– Updated global digital elevation modeling sources
– Updates calibration and validation
– Accessibility from a cloud-based commercial environment
As with collection 1, collection 2 uses layers as the inventory structure for the layer 1 data product. The purpose of the layer definition is to support easier identification of suitable scenes for pixel-level analysis time series and are based on data quality and level of processing.
Collection 2 is accessible from a cloud-based commercial environment via the EarthExplorer data portal:
https://www.usgs.gov/core-science-systems/nli/landsat/landsat-collection-2
