How to find the best Band Combinations for Landsat 4-5 TM

Band combination for Landsat 4-5 TM Band Combination for Landsat 8 Landsat 5 was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in Califor...

Band combination for Landsat 4-5 TM

Band Combination for Landsat 8

Landsat 5 was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on March 1, 1984, and like Landsat 4, carried the Multispectral Scanner (MSS) and the Thematic Mapper (TM) instruments. Landsat 5 delivered Earth imaging data nearly 29 years - and set a Guinness World Record For 'Longest Operating Earth Observation Satellite', before being decommissioned on June 5, 2013. 

Here’s a rundown of some common band combinations applied to Landsat 4-5 TM, displayed as a red, green, blue (RGB):

Natural Color	3 2 1
False Color (urban)	7 5 3
Color Infrared (vegetation)	4 3 2
Agriculture	5 4 1
Atmospheric Penetration	7 5 4
Healthy Vegetation	4 5 1
Land/Water	4 5 3
Natural With Atmospheric Removal	7 4 2
Shortwave Infrared	7 4 3
Vegetation Analysis	5 4 3

Band Combination for Landsat 8

Thematic Mapper (TM)

• Added the mid-range infrared to the data
• Seven spectral bands, including a thermal band:
  • Band 1 Visible (0.45 - 0.52 µm) 30 m
  • Band 2 Visible (0.52 - 0.60 µm) 30 m
  • Band 3 Visible (0.63 - 0.69 µm) 30 m
  • Band 4 Near-Infrared (0.76 - 0.90 µm) 30 m
  • Band 5 Near-Infrared (1.55 - 1.75 µm) 30 m
  • Band 6 Thermal (10.40 - 12.50 µm) 120 m
  • Band 7 Mid-Infrared (2.08 - 2.35 µm) 30 m
• Ground Sampling Interval (pixel size): 30 m reflective, 120 m thermal