§60111 Landsat Program Management

Summary

The Administrator and the Secretary of Defense must run the Landsat program together using one coordinated management team. They must make a written plan that says who does what, who pays for what, and how money will be shared. The main goal is to keep unenhanced Landsat data coming without a break by building and flying Landsat 7 as soon as possible. Landsat 7 must be at least as capable as Landsat 6 and include a tracking and data relay communications capability. The plan must include a baseline funding schedule that both agencies accept and that makes their total shares about equal over Landsat 7’s life. Any extra upgrades beyond that baseline must be paid for by a specific sponsor and must not risk data continuity. The plan must also fund a technology demonstration program to test new remote sensing ideas that might cut costs or better serve users. The joint management team must buy, launch, and run Landsat 7; make the system useful to civilian, military, commercial, and foreign users; keep unenhanced Landsat data unclassified and widely available except for narrow legal exceptions; collect high-priority data needed by the United States Global Change Research Program (Global Change Research Act of 1990 (15 U.S.C. 2921 et seq.)) and national security; oversee related contracts; and send copies of data to the National Satellite Land Remote Sensing Data Archive. They may hire private companies for services if money and existing contract rules allow. They must get outside, impartial advice from a wide range of scientists and users and, every two years, report to Congress the public comments, responses, data use amounts, and any suggested policy or program changes.