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National Land Imaging Program

Our Nation’s economic security and environmental vitality rely on continuous monitoring of the Earth’s continents, islands, and coastal regions. 

The USGS National Land Imaging (NLI) Program makes it possible to record, study, and understand how the surface of the Earth is changing at local, regional, national and global scales. 

News

Landsat MSS Level-1 Products Reprocessed to Correct Brightness Values

Landsat MSS Level-1 Products Reprocessed to Correct Brightness Values

Landsat Product Supports Water Management Worldwide

Landsat Product Supports Water Management Worldwide

Latest in Landsat August 2026 - Vol. 5 | Issue 8

Latest in Landsat August 2026 - Vol. 5 | Issue 8

Publications

Enhancements to the USGS Landsat Level 2 surface temperature and emissivity product for Collection 3 reprocessing Enhancements to the USGS Landsat Level 2 surface temperature and emissivity product for Collection 3 reprocessing

The Landsat program provides the longest continuous global record of thermal infrared observations of the Earth's surface, underpinning critical applications in climate monitoring, water resources, ecosystem dynamics, urban heat analysis, and natural hazard assessment. The release of a global inventory of Landsat Collection 2 Level 2 surface temperature products by the U.S. Geological...
Authors
Saeed Arab, Chase Mueller, Christopher J. Crawford, Danika Wellington, Ray Dittmeier, Glynn Hulley, Aaron Gerace, Calli Jenkerson, Simon Hook, Amirhossein Hassanzadeh, Rehman Eon, Cody Anderson, Pat Scaramuzza, Frank M. Göttsche

Across-track tilt concept for sun glint mitigation in future Earth-observing missions Across-track tilt concept for sun glint mitigation in future Earth-observing missions

Sun glint is a major limitation for spaceborne optical remote sensing of aquatic environments, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions. By dominating the at-sensor radiance, sun glint complicates atmospheric correction and reduces the quality of aquatic reflectance products derived across Earth observation missions. This study presents a machine learning framework to quantify...
Authors
Saeed Arab, Christopher J. Crawford, Benjamin Page, Kevin Turpie, Peter Gege, David Thompson, Kelly Luis

Quantifying Landsat’s contributions to U.S. agricultural and forestry applications Quantifying Landsat’s contributions to U.S. agricultural and forestry applications

The Landsat program has provided over 54 years of multispectral imagery, contributing vital information for agricultural and forestry scientific research and operational activities. Freely available Landsat data have enabled scientists to analyze land use patterns, assess ecological impacts, and develop strategies for sustainable management. We explored Landsat’s pivotal role through the...
Authors
Ellen Wengert, Jordan Rowe, Shankar N. Ramaseri Chandra, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Iris J. Garthwaite, Zhuoting Wu, Gregory Snyder, Kimberly A. Casey, Crista L. Straub, Daniel W. Opstal, Everett Hinkley

Science

NUSO Research Missions

Research missions, often performed in cooperation with other DOI bureaus as well as non-DOI collaborators, serve as vital tools in the ongoing evaluation and integration activities that support the strategic implementation of UAS into the USGS and the DOI.
NUSO Research Missions

NUSO Research Missions

Research missions, often performed in cooperation with other DOI bureaus as well as non-DOI collaborators, serve as vital tools in the ongoing evaluation and integration activities that support the strategic implementation of UAS into the USGS and the DOI.
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Fire Science

Wildfires shape landscapes and affect everything from water supplies to wildlife habitats. The USGS studies fire patterns and their effects using remote sensing data to map and characterize wildland fuels, monitor fire risks, model fire behavior, forecast fire danger, and assess post-fire recovery. This work tracks spatial and temporal patterns of ecosystem disturbance including wildland-urban...
Fire Science

Fire Science

Wildfires shape landscapes and affect everything from water supplies to wildlife habitats. The USGS studies fire patterns and their effects using remote sensing data to map and characterize wildland fuels, monitor fire risks, model fire behavior, forecast fire danger, and assess post-fire recovery. This work tracks spatial and temporal patterns of ecosystem disturbance including wildland-urban...
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Water and Drought

Water sustains communities, agriculture, and ecosystems — and when drought strikes, the effects ripple across all of them. The USGS monitors water availability, surface water extent, and quality at regional, national, and global scales using remote sensing, watershed modeling, and evapotranspiration data. We track vegetation stress, water use, and drought impacts on wildfire risk, invasive species...
Water and Drought

Water and Drought

Water sustains communities, agriculture, and ecosystems — and when drought strikes, the effects ripple across all of them. The USGS monitors water availability, surface water extent, and quality at regional, national, and global scales using remote sensing, watershed modeling, and evapotranspiration data. We track vegetation stress, water use, and drought impacts on wildfire risk, invasive species...
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