Online Desk: NASA has recognised the contributions of the Landsat 9 calibration/validation team with the Robert H Goddard Award – Science. The combined Landsat Cal/Val Team is led by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and the USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center and also includes South Dakota State University, Rochester (New York) Institute of Technology, the University of Arizona, and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Manisha Das Chaity who is now doing her PhD at Rochester and a former student of the Khulna University of Engineering Technology (KUET) also worked on this project as one of the key members, reports UNB.

Cody Anderson, manager for the USGS EROS Cal/Val Team, said: “It takes a pretty impressive, large, dedicated, motivated team to pull this off. The team is also planning for the next Landsat mission, Landsat Next.” The Goddard Space Flight Center has presented Robert H Goddard awards for exceptional achievement since 1961. This award is considered one of the most prestigious awards in the field of space science and technology, and it is highly coveted by scientists, engineers, and researchers working in the space industry.

Landsat satellite data product is open to the public all over the world and has applications in a wide range of areas – from urban planning to climate change monitoring. So, it is necessary to have accurate data products for research, decision-making, and operational applications. Chaity developed an absolute calibration model that has substantially improved the capability of the Cal/Val team to measure the performance of active Landsat Satellite missions to maintain data quality at the highest levels.