Assessing Landsat 8 TIRS Calibration Stability Using MODIS

The Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) on-board Landsat 8 launched in February 2013 and has provided Earth view observations in two thermal bands (10.8 and 12.0 μm) for over two years. Maintaining a high level of data quality is necessary to extend the continuity of the Landsat thermal band data record. On-orbit, TIRS uses a temperature controlled blackbody for calibration, similar to the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instruments on the Terra and Aqua satellite platforms. The thermal band observations of the two on-orbit MODIS instruments have demonstrated good long term calibration stability and consistency over their 15+ (Terra) and 13+ (Aqua) year mission lifetimes. Using repeated observations of selected Earth targets, TIRS calibration stability will be assessed in comparison to that of MODIS. Both cold scenes over Antarctica and more typical scene temperature ranges over coastal ocean buoy sites will be used. A stray light corrected TIRS data set will also be analyzed to determine the impact of the correction on the data product.