Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center
News
Below you'll find the most recent news about EROS and USGS. Please contact Jan Nelson at jsnelson@usgs.gov for assistance with specific media questions and requests.
Landsat Science Team Meets to Discuss Landsat 9
On July 22, 2021, the Landsat Science Team met virtually to hear from NASA and the USGS on the readiness of supporting systems for the upcoming launch of Landsat 9, which is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Thursday, September 16, 2021.
Pecora 22 Call for Special Session Proposals
The 22nd William T. Pecora Memorial Remote Sensing Symposium (Pecora 22) will be held October 23 – 28, 2022 in Denver, Colorado, USA.
Midwestern Roots tie Landsat Mural Artist to USGS EROS Center
Lompoc, California and the Landsat program have a long and storied history.
All eight Landsat satellites have launched from the military installation now known as Vandenberg Space Force Base (SFB), which will soon host the ascent of Landsat 9.
New Land Cover Maps Capture Nearly Two Decades of Change Across the U.S.
The U.S. Geological Survey recently released updated land cover maps for the conterminous United States that depict 18 years of change to the Nation’s landscapes. New maps comparing the 2001 to 2019 National Land Cover Databases show that more than 10 percent of land cover in the Lower 48 states changed during that time, largely in forested areas.
Examples of How Landsat Supports Great Lakes Restoration
Thousands of years ago, the receding Laurentide Ice Sheet gave North America a gift: five large lakes.
Study of California Blue Oak Decline During Drought Draws Interest
A study published June 29, 2021 in the journal Frontiers in Climate, titled “Hotter Drought Escalates Tree Cover Declines in Blue Oak Woodlands of California,” by four EROS scientists, already has been attracting attention.
Land Use Models from EROS Offer Insight, Management Guidance for Delaware River Basin
In the mid-1960s, the city of Philadelphia faced a potential public health crisis.
Looking at Past, Future Spread of Invasive Plants Like Cheatgrass
A new publication about exotic annual grasses not only documents their abundance across the western United States, but peers into the past to assess their spread and into the future to predict changes.
LANDFIRE Releases Disturbance Data for 2017-19 with LF 2019 Limited
A year ago, the Landscape Fire and Resource Planning Management Tools (LANDFIRE) Program released its 2016 Remap for the conterminous United States (CONUS).
The update was the most significant in LANDFIRE’s 16-year history, a ground-up rebuild of the base map to reflect 2016 land surface conditions that included a host of improvements to its 20-...
EROS Maps Highlight Growth in U.S. Irrigated Lands
There was 7 % more irrigated land in the U.S. in 2017 than there was in 2002. The biggest gainers were the Missouri, and Upper and Lower Mississippi river basins, with losses in California and the Texas-Gulf Coast.
EROS Supports Wildfire Science through Updates, Upgrades to Landscape Mapping
With the height of the 2021 wildfire season on the horizon, the U.S. Geological Survey is working to provide the research and data needed to plan for and respond to wildfire activity.
Keeping an Eye on Vulnerable Coastal Wetlands
Coastlines can have it pretty rough. Even a beach isn’t always sunshine. Wind and water constantly wear at its edges—and then there are the storms.