LCMAP Change Stories
Sequoias Under Siege
Phosphate Mining in Florida's Bone Valley
Washaway Beach
Disney World
Palm Springs, CA
Click the "Science" links below to see how we track change over time.
Every pixel tells a story.
That’s because a Landsat pixel is more than a speck of satellite data. It’s a piece of ground on planet Earth. Ground that changes with the seasons, through the years, through assault by rapid disaster or the slow churn of natural cycles. Cities grow. Forests burn, then return. Lakes and rivers swell and shift.
The work of the USGS Land Change Monitoring, Assessment, and Projection (LCMAP) initiative takes place with this understanding top of mind. Its datasets use Landsat information to follow the land cover and change story of every pixel in the conterminous United States, year by year, from 1985 on.
In doing so, LCMAP data products open the door to a deeper understanding of our nation. Its deep time series approach also offers guidance to satellite-based land cover science, helping the research community to improve land cover mapping for the entire planet.
LCMAP Change Stories are designed to offer a small window into the wealth of possible inquiry made possible by the initiative’s approach to land cover mapping.
Follow the “Science” links below to explore these stories. You’ll see the impact of hurricanes and tornadoes, urban sprawl and industrial expansion, landslides and erosion, and much more. Check back for more stories as the months pass, and be sure to follow USGS EROS on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram for news and updates.
Related Content
Follow the links to see each LCMAP Change Story
LCMAP Change Stories: Outfitting the Ozarks
The meandering shoreline is the claim to fame for the Midwestern tourist oasis that is Lake of the Ozarks in Central Missouri.
The Missouri Division of Tourism’s website leads its page on the state’s most popular visitor destination by noting that the lake’s 1,100 miles of freshwater coast are more than even California has to offer.
LCMAP Change Stories: Where the Forests Fall, the Grasses Grow
The forests and rangelands of the Western U.S. face fire dangers on multiple fronts.
The trees themselves provide fuel for wildfires, of course, but there are additional factors at play in this mountainous, forested stretch of land at the Idaho-Montana border.
LCMAP Change Stories: Crops Give Way to Concrete
Less than 15 miles separate the city of Plainfield from the nearby metropolis of Indianapolis, the capital of Indiana and the state’s largest urban center.
LCMAP Change Stories: Where the Ocean Eats the Land
The unincorporated hamlet of North Cove, WA is the owner of a rather unfortunate superlative: fastest-eroding place in the West Coast.
LCMAP Change Stories: Building a Boomtown, Block by Block
LCMAP Change Stories: Gone in 60 Seconds
LCMAP Change Stories: It's a Sprawl World After All
LCMAP Change Stories: Hurricanes in the Everglades
LCMAP Change Stories: Alabama Tornadoes
Related Content
Follow the links to see each LCMAP Change Story
LCMAP Change Stories: Outfitting the Ozarks
The meandering shoreline is the claim to fame for the Midwestern tourist oasis that is Lake of the Ozarks in Central Missouri.
The Missouri Division of Tourism’s website leads its page on the state’s most popular visitor destination by noting that the lake’s 1,100 miles of freshwater coast are more than even California has to offer.
LCMAP Change Stories: Where the Forests Fall, the Grasses Grow
The forests and rangelands of the Western U.S. face fire dangers on multiple fronts.
The trees themselves provide fuel for wildfires, of course, but there are additional factors at play in this mountainous, forested stretch of land at the Idaho-Montana border.
LCMAP Change Stories: Crops Give Way to Concrete
Less than 15 miles separate the city of Plainfield from the nearby metropolis of Indianapolis, the capital of Indiana and the state’s largest urban center.
LCMAP Change Stories: Where the Ocean Eats the Land
The unincorporated hamlet of North Cove, WA is the owner of a rather unfortunate superlative: fastest-eroding place in the West Coast.