Remote Sensing
Climate Science Spotlight
Remote sensing offers ways to observe the Earth’s climate by collecting data without direct contact, utilizing satellite or aircraft-based sensors.
Tools such as Landsat, Earth-observing satellites, allow USGS scientists to lead the way in monitoring long-term changes in climate that impact Earth’s surface, oceans, and atmosphere. The technology can be used to map and monitor specific Earth changes and the scientific data collected is used to further understand climate change, its potential effects on the world and to improve projections of future change.
Quickly jump to how USGS is delivering climate science:
remote sensing phenology
land change monitoring
landsat
Using Remote Sensing to Document Plant Life Cycle Trends And Climate Change Impacts
Phenology is the study of plant and animal life cycles in relation to the seasons. USGS maintains various annual phenological metrics at the Earth Resources Observation and Science Center (EROS) for the conterminous United States. Together the curated satellite data metrics represent a powerful tool for documenting life cycle trends and the impacts of climate change on ecosystems.
Remote sensing phenology uses satellites to track phenological events in tandem with ground observation networks. The satellite sensors monitor phenological events such as spring green ups or the first snowfall, gathering data about entire ecosystems or regions rather than individual species, revealing broad phenological trends which would be difficult if not impossible to detect solely from the ground.
Data collection by satellite sensors can be useful for assessing factors sensitive to climate variation such as crop conditions, drought severity, and wildfire risk as well as tracking invasive species, infectious diseases, and insect pests.
Using Satellite Data to Map and Monitor Land Surface Changes.
Satellite images have been continuously collected from orbits around the Earth for over 50 years.
Analyzing satellite and other data not only help USGS scientist to determine how the Earth’s land cover has changed over time, but also helps to identify the factors causing the changes. Understanding the how and why of past land cover and land use change makes it possible for USGS to be on the forefront of creating more accurate tools and reference datasets, which are used to check a land cover map’s accuracy, and as an input for estimating annual land cover area and rates of change.
Land Change Monitoring, Assessment, and Projection (LCMAP) is USGS’ science initiative based at the Earth Resources Observation and Science center. LCMAP represents the newest generation of land cover mapping and change monitoring products taken from 30-by-30-meter plots of land within the conterminous United States and backed by over the 30 years of science. The current suite of LCMAP products offers a greater frequency with additional land cover and change variables than previous efforts.
Landsat: An Eye on Earth’s Climate Change from Space
The Landsat Program is a series of Earth-observing satellite missions jointly managed by U.S. Geological Survey and NASA. Since its inaugural launch on July 23, 1972, Landsat satellites have provided continuous global coverage of Earth’s changing landscape. Landsat’s unique long-term data record provides the basis for a critical understanding of environmental and climate changes occurring in the United States and around the world.
The Landsat archive contains over a half century of data, documenting the dramatic evidence of climate change from its captures of Earth including glacier ice retreat, sea level rise, hazardous weather conditions, drought, extreme heat and much more.
The comprehensive Landsat archive is always available for free.
USGS Delivering Climate Science
To policymakers, resource managers, and the public to help guide better decisions for building sustainable resource stewardship across America’s public lands and beyond.
Tools such as Landsat, Earth-observing satellites, allow USGS scientists to lead the way in monitoring long-term changes in climate that impact Earth’s surface, oceans, and atmosphere. The technology can be used to map and monitor specific Earth changes and the scientific data collected is used to further understand climate change, its potential effects on the world and to improve projections of future change.
Quickly jump to how USGS is delivering climate science:
remote sensing phenology
land change monitoring
landsat
Using Remote Sensing to Document Plant Life Cycle Trends And Climate Change Impacts
Phenology is the study of plant and animal life cycles in relation to the seasons. USGS maintains various annual phenological metrics at the Earth Resources Observation and Science Center (EROS) for the conterminous United States. Together the curated satellite data metrics represent a powerful tool for documenting life cycle trends and the impacts of climate change on ecosystems.
Remote sensing phenology uses satellites to track phenological events in tandem with ground observation networks. The satellite sensors monitor phenological events such as spring green ups or the first snowfall, gathering data about entire ecosystems or regions rather than individual species, revealing broad phenological trends which would be difficult if not impossible to detect solely from the ground.
Data collection by satellite sensors can be useful for assessing factors sensitive to climate variation such as crop conditions, drought severity, and wildfire risk as well as tracking invasive species, infectious diseases, and insect pests.
Using Satellite Data to Map and Monitor Land Surface Changes.
Satellite images have been continuously collected from orbits around the Earth for over 50 years.
Analyzing satellite and other data not only help USGS scientist to determine how the Earth’s land cover has changed over time, but also helps to identify the factors causing the changes. Understanding the how and why of past land cover and land use change makes it possible for USGS to be on the forefront of creating more accurate tools and reference datasets, which are used to check a land cover map’s accuracy, and as an input for estimating annual land cover area and rates of change.
Land Change Monitoring, Assessment, and Projection (LCMAP) is USGS’ science initiative based at the Earth Resources Observation and Science center. LCMAP represents the newest generation of land cover mapping and change monitoring products taken from 30-by-30-meter plots of land within the conterminous United States and backed by over the 30 years of science. The current suite of LCMAP products offers a greater frequency with additional land cover and change variables than previous efforts.
Landsat: An Eye on Earth’s Climate Change from Space
The Landsat Program is a series of Earth-observing satellite missions jointly managed by U.S. Geological Survey and NASA. Since its inaugural launch on July 23, 1972, Landsat satellites have provided continuous global coverage of Earth’s changing landscape. Landsat’s unique long-term data record provides the basis for a critical understanding of environmental and climate changes occurring in the United States and around the world.
The Landsat archive contains over a half century of data, documenting the dramatic evidence of climate change from its captures of Earth including glacier ice retreat, sea level rise, hazardous weather conditions, drought, extreme heat and much more.
The comprehensive Landsat archive is always available for free.
USGS Delivering Climate Science
To policymakers, resource managers, and the public to help guide better decisions for building sustainable resource stewardship across America’s public lands and beyond.