EROS CalVal Center of Excellence (ECCOE)
Home
Leveraging years of multi-scale optical system geometric and radiometric calibration and characterization experience, the EROS Cal/Val Center of Excellence (ECCOE) is a global leader in improving the accuracy, precision, and quality of remote sensing data.
ECCOE-Supported Projects
ECCOE Staff provide technical support to a number of USGS projects that are important in Earth Observation discovery and data characterization:
| ECCOE maintains the primary responsibility for radiometric and geometric characterization and calibration of the Landsat instruments and spacecrafts. | The Joint Agency Commercial Imagery Evaluation (JACIE) team assesses the quality and capabilities of newly launched commercial high-resolution satellites. | Requirements Capabilities & Analysis for Earth Observations (RCA-EO) works to understand user needs for Earth observation, measurement, and monitoring. |
| MORE INFORMATION | MORE INFORMATION | MORE INFORMATION |
| Lidar data and their derivative metrics are fundamental inputs to many areas of scientific research, including flood, erosion, and coastal modeling. | Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) allow for new opportunities for gathering data essential to land management and Earth science. | The Test Site Catalog Contains worldwide calibration sites used for post launch characterization and calibration of space-based optical imaging sensors. |
| MORE INFORMATION | MORE INFORMATION | MORE INFORMATION |
News
Underfly Positions Landsat 9 Below Landsat 8 for Simultaneous Scenes
The newly launched Landsat 9 is experiencing a once-in-a-mission lifetime event where its orbit is directly below Landsat 8 for an “underfly.” For several days in the middle of November, the pair of Earth-observing satellites are flying together, collecting data at the same time for the same sites and requiring simultaneous downlinking to global ground station antennas.
Drones, Mirrors, Gear Galore—Welcome to a Satellite Validation Event
An invasion of sorts took place recently in an alfalfa field in northeastern Brookings, SD.
It wasn’t an invasion of unwanted species—though it does ultimately help monitor environmental issues. Rather, the field bustled with drones in the air, angled panels of mirrors and pools of water on the ground, and people roaming the field with gear and wands.
New Report Explains Landsat’s Role as ‘Gold Standard’ for Calibration
Landsat data have long been recognized for the quality and reliability of their calibration. A recent report puts a spotlight on that commitment to accuracy.
Publications
System characterization of Earth observation sensors
This U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report provides information from assessments of Earth observation sensors completed by the U.S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation and Science Cal/Val Center of Excellence. These reports are provided as independent measures of basic system performance by the Earth Resources Observation and Science...
Ramaseri Chandra, Shankar N.
System characterization report on the WorldView-3 Imager
Executive SummaryThis report addresses system characterization of the Maxar WorldView-3 satellite and is part of a series of system characterization reports produced and delivered by the U.S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation and Science Cal/Val Center of Excellence in 2020. These reports present and detail the methodology and...
Cantrell, Simon; Christopherson, Jon; Anderson, Cody; Stensaas, Gregory L.; Ramaseri Chandra, Shankar N.; Kim, Minsu; Park, Seonkyung
System characterization report on the Gaofen-1
Executive SummaryThis report addresses system characterization of Gaofen-1 and is part of a series of system characterization reports produced and delivered by the U.S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation and Science Cal/Val Center of Excellence in 2020. These reports present the detail methodology and procedures for characterization;...
Shrestha, Mahesh; Sampath, Aparajithan; Ramaseri Chandra, Shankar N.; Christopherson, Jon; Shaw, Jerad; Stensaas, Gregory L.; Anderson, Cody