The Operational Land Imager (OLI) being built by Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. for the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM), the eighth in the Landsat satellite series, has successfully passed the Instrument Critical Design Review (ICDR).

The ICDR, a four-day process in Boulder, included more than 60 representatives from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center project office and review team; members of the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) Independent Review Board; Landsat scientists from the United States Geological Survey; and industry participants.

The team reviewed OLI systems architecture, as well as detailed analysis of integration and the test approach including validation and calibration.

"We are focused on delivering an advanced instrument to support the government's continuation of the vital Landsat program," said David L. Taylor, president and CEO of Ball Aerospace.

"Successful on-time completion of OLI will further complement Ball's strong legacy in both Earth science and remote-sensing missions."

ICDR participants noted Ball's heritage from similar instruments in congratulating the OLI team for retiring major risks and moving well beyond ICDR in most areas.

The OLI instrument provides 15-meter (49ft.) panchromatic and 30m multi-spectral Earth-imaging spatial-resolution capability. OLI includes a 185km swath allowing the entire globe to be imaged every 16 days.

The Landsat Program is a series of Earth-observing satellite missions jointly managed by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). For more than 36 years, Landsat satellites have continuously and consistently collected images of Earth, creating a historical archive unmatched in quality, detail, coverage and length. The multispectral imagery is gathered for applications that include agricultural monitoring, natural resource management and land-use planning.