Conference Papers

To understand the current community structure on reefs in the Dry Tortugas, we conducted specieslevel surveys of macroalgae, coral diversity, herbivorous and game fishes, urchins, and substratum composition (e.g., rugosity) in shallow (3- to 5-m depth) low-relief reef and hardbottom habitats in October 2007. We had particular interest in the ecological process of herbivory inside and...

The National Landsat Archive Production System (NLAPS) has been the primary processing system for Landsat data since U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science Center (EROS) started archiving Landsat data. NLAPS converts raw satellite data into radiometrically and geometrically calibrated products. NLAPS has historically used the Internal Calibrator (IC) to...

We describe the use of Google Earth during and after a large damaging earthquake thatstruck the central Japan coast on 16 July 2007 to collect and organize damage information and guide the reconnaissance activities. This software enabled greater real-time collaboration among scientists and engineers. After the field investigation, the Google Earth map is used as a final reporting product...

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Proto-Flight Model (PFM), launched on December 18, 1999, aboard NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS) Terra satellite has 20 reflective solar bands (RSB) with wavelengths ranging from 0.41 to 2.1 mum over a wide field of view (plusmn55deg). The Landsat 7 (L7) Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) sensor was launched on April 15, 1999...

During the last six years, from 2003-2008, Japan has been struck by three significant and damaging earthquakes: The most recent M6.6 Niigata Chuetsu Oki earthquake of July 16, 2007 off the coast of Kashiwazaki City, Japan; The M6.6 Niigata Chuetsu earthquake of October 23, 2004, located in Niigata Prefecture in the central Uonuma Hills; and the M8.0 Tokachi Oki Earthquake of September 26...

An initial investigation of soil liquefaction sites from the July, 28 1976 Tangshan M7.8 earthquake was conducted between 1976 and 1978 by the National Ministry of Railways, China. These data are the basis of the ‘Chinese Method’ for assessment of liquefaction potential of silty-sand deposits, and are an important component of the worldwide data set for modern probabilistic methods for...

As part of an international cooperative research program, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and researchers from the National Gas Hydrate Program (NGHP) of India are studying the physical properties of sediment recovered during the NGHP-01 cruise conducted offshore India during 2006. Here we report on index property, acoustic velocity, and triaxial shear test results for samples...

Global digital elevation models are routinely used in a variety of earth science applications. GTOPO30, a widely used global elevation model produced by the U.S. Geological Survey, was produced in the mid-1990s from several regional sources of elevation information. Since the time GTOPO30 was developed, new and improved sources of elevation data have become available, and the U.S...

The multispectral data from the Landsat 5 (L5) Thematic Mapper (TM) sensor provides the backbone of an extensive archive of moderate resolution Earth imagery. Even after more than 24 years of service, the L5 TM is still operational. Given the longevity of the instrument, the detectors have aged, and the system's radiometric characteristics have changed since launch. The calibration...

The capabilities of the currently operational Landsat satellites may be lost before the launch of the follow-on Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM), thus producing a gap in the Landsat data record and the National Satellite Land Remote Sensing Data Archive (NSLRSDA). In anticipation of a gap, the Federal agencies responsible for Landsat program management, the National Aeronautics and...

Photogrammetry is concerned with the accurate derivation of spatial and descriptive information from imagery that can be used in several applications such as mapping, DEM generation, orthophoto production, construction planning, environmental monitoring, structural analysis, 3D visualization, and change detection. The type of cameras traditionally used for high accuracy projects were...

Coral diseases have played a major role in the degradation of coral reefs in the Caribbean, including those in the US Virgin Islands (USVI). In 2005, bleaching affected reefs throughout the Caribbean, and was especially severe on USVI reefs. Some corals began to regain their color as water temperatures cooled, but an outbreak of disease (primarily white plague) led to losses of over 60%...