Melanie Vanderhoof
Melanie Vanderhoof is a Research Geographer with the USGS, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center in Denver, CO.
Melanie's research focuses on using satellite imagery to track terrestrial and water ecosystem condition. She is particularly interested in enhancing methods to map wildfire, monitor post-fire recovery, as well as model the impact of drought to flood conditions on wetlands, lakes, and downstream river discharge.
Professional Experience
U.S. Geological Survey, Research Geographer (2015-Present)
ORISE Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development (2014-2015)
Education and Certifications
PhD in Geography from Clark University in 2014
M.S. degree in Geography from San Francisco State University in 2007
B.S. degree in Biology and Society from Cornell University in 2004
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 24
The Landsat Burned Area products for the conterminous United States (ver. 3.0, March 2022) The Landsat Burned Area products for the conterminous United States (ver. 3.0, March 2022)
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has developed and implemented an algorithm that identifies burned areas in temporally-dense time series of Landsat Analysis Ready Data (ARD) scenes to produce the Landsat Burned Area Products. The algorithm makes use of predictors derived from individual ARD Landsat scenes, lagged reference conditions, and change metrics between the scene and reference...
Data release for tracking rates of post-fire conifer regeneration distinct from deciduous vegetation recovery across the western U.S. Data release for tracking rates of post-fire conifer regeneration distinct from deciduous vegetation recovery across the western U.S.
Post-fire shifts in vegetation composition will have broad ecological impacts. However, information characterizing post-fire recovery patterns and their drivers are lacking over large spatial extents. In this analysis we used Landsat imagery collected when snow cover (SCS) was present, in combination with growing season (GS) imagery, to distinguish evergreen vegetation from deciduous...
Tracking disturbance and inundation to identify wetland loss Tracking disturbance and inundation to identify wetland loss
Global trends in wetland degradation and loss have created an urgency to monitor wetland extent, as well as track the distribution and causes of wetland loss. Satellite imagery can be used to monitor wetlands over time, but few efforts have attempted to distinguish anthropogenic wetland loss from climate-driven variability in wetland extent. We present an approach to concurrently track...
Data Release for the validation of the USGS Landsat Burned Area Product across the conterminous U.S. Data Release for the validation of the USGS Landsat Burned Area Product across the conterminous U.S.
Complete and accurate burned area map data are needed to document spatial and temporal patterns of fires, to quantify their drivers, and to assess the impacts on human and natural systems. In this study, we developed the Landsat Burned Area (BA) algorithm, an update from the Landsat Burned Area Essential Climate Variable (BAECV) algorithm. We present the BA algorithm and products...
Data release for Influence of multi-decadal land use, irrigation practices and climate on riparian corridors across the Upper Missouri River headwaters basin, Montana Data release for Influence of multi-decadal land use, irrigation practices and climate on riparian corridors across the Upper Missouri River headwaters basin, Montana
The Upper Missouri River headwaters (UMH) basin (36 400 km2 ) depends on its river corridors to support irrigated agriculture and world-class trout fisheries. We evaluated trends (1984-2016) in riparian wetness, an indicator of the riparian condition, in peak irrigation months (June, July and August) for 158 km2 of riparian area across the basin using the Landsat normalized difference...
Data release for it matters when you measure it: using snow-cover Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to isolate post-fire conifer regeneration Data release for it matters when you measure it: using snow-cover Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to isolate post-fire conifer regeneration
Landsat Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is commonly used to monitor post-fire green-up; however, most studies do not distinguish new growth of conifer from deciduous or herbaceous species, despite potential consequences for local climate, carbon and wildlife. We found that dual season (growing and snow cover) NDVI improved our ability to distinguish conifer tree presence...
Filter Total Items: 43
Wind turbine wakes can impact down-wind vegetation greenness Wind turbine wakes can impact down-wind vegetation greenness
Global wind energy has expanded 5-fold since 2010 and is predicted to expand another 8–10-fold over the next 30 years. Wakes generated by wind turbines can alter downwind microclimates and potentially downwind vegetation. However, the design of past studies has made it difficult to isolate the impact of wake effects on vegetation from land cover change. We used hourly wind data to model...
Authors
James E. Diffendorfer, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Zachary H. Ancona
Mapping wetland burned area from Sentinel-2 across the southeastern United States and its contributions relative to Landsat 8 (2016-2019) Mapping wetland burned area from Sentinel-2 across the southeastern United States and its contributions relative to Landsat 8 (2016-2019)
Prescribed fires and wildfires are common in wetland ecosystems across the Southeastern United States. However, the wetland burned area has been chronically underestimated across the region due to (1) spectral confusion between open water and burned area, (2) rapid post-fire vegetation regrowth, and (3) high annual precipitation limiting clear-sky satellite observations. We developed a...
Authors
Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Todd Hawbaker, Casey Teske, Andrea Ku, Joe Noble, Joshua J. Picotte
Using the Landsat Burned Area products to derive fire history relevant for fire management and conservation in the state of Florida, southeastern USA Using the Landsat Burned Area products to derive fire history relevant for fire management and conservation in the state of Florida, southeastern USA
Development of comprehensive spatially explicit fire occurrence data remains one of the most critical needs for fire managers globally, and especially for conservation across the southeastern United States. Not only are many endangered species and ecosystems in that region reliant on frequent fire, but fire risk analysis, prescribed fire planning, and fire behavior modeling are sensitive...
Authors
Casey Teske, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Todd Hawbaker, Joe Noble, J. Kevin Hires
New operational national satellite burned area product New operational national satellite burned area product
Introduction Lack of consistent spatial and temporal fire information with relevant spatial resolution hinders land management and broad-scale assessments of fire activity, especially in the eastern United States and the Great Plains where fi re is important ecologically and culturally. Remote sensing can be used to monitor fi re activity, augment existing fi re data, and fill...
Authors
Todd Hawbaker, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Gail L. Schmidt, Yen-Ju G. Beal, Joshua J. Picotte, Joshua Takacs, Jeff T. Falgout, John L. Dwyer
Development of a standard database of reference sites for validating global burned area products Development of a standard database of reference sites for validating global burned area products
Over the past 2 decades, several global burned area products have been produced and released to the public. However, the accuracy assessment of such products largely depends on the availability of reliable reference data that currently do not exist on a global scale or whose production require a high level of dedication of project resources. The important lack of reference data for the...
Authors
Magi Franquesa, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Dimitris Stavrakoudis, Ioannis Gitas, Ekhi Roteta, Marc Padilla, Emilio Chuvieco
Tracking rates of postfire conifer regeneration vs. deciduous vegetation recovery across the western United States Tracking rates of postfire conifer regeneration vs. deciduous vegetation recovery across the western United States
Postfire shifts in vegetation composition will have broad ecological impacts. However, information characterizing postfire recovery patterns and their drivers are lacking over large spatial extents. In this analysis, we used Landsat imagery collected when snow cover (SCS) was present, in combination with growing season (GS) imagery, to distinguish evergreen vegetation from deciduous...
Authors
Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Todd Hawbaker, Andrea Ming Ku, Kyle Merriam, Erin Berryman, Megan Cattau
Non-USGS Publications**
Vanderhoof, M.K., Alexander, L.C. (2016) The role of lake expansion in altering the wetland landscape of the Prairie Pothole Region. Wetlands, 36(2):309-321, DOI:10.1007/s13157-015-0728-1.
U.S. EPA (2015) Connectivity of Streams and Wetlands to Downstream Waters: A Review and Synthesis of the Scientific Evidence (Final Report). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-14/475F. (co-author on report)
Vanderhoof, M., Williams, C. (2015) Persistence of evapotranspiration impacts from mountain pine beetle outbreaks in lodgepole pine forests, south-central Rocky Mountains. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 200:78-91.
Ghimire, B., Williams, C.A., Collatz, G.J., Vanderhoof, M., Rogan, J., Kulaowski, D., Masek, J.G. (2015) Large carbon release legacy from bark beetle outbreaks across the Western United States. Global Change Biology, 21(8):3087-3101.
Vanderhoof, M., Williams, C.A., Shuai, Y., Jarvis, D., Kulakowski, D., Masek, J. (2014) Albedo-induced radiative forcing from mountain pine beetle outbreaks in forests, south-central Rocky Mountains: magnitude, persistence, and relation to outbreak severity. Biogeosciences, 11:563-575.
Williams, C., Vanderhoof, M., Khomik, M., Ghimire, B. (2014). Post-clearcut dynamics of carbon, water and energy changes in a mid-latitude temperate, deciduous broadleaf forest environment. Global Change Biology, 20(3):992-1007.
Khomik, M., Williams, C.A., Vanderhoof, M.K., MacLean, R., Dillen, S.Y. (2014). On the causes of rising gross ecosystem productivity in a regenerating clearcut environment: leaf area, species composition, or environmental conditions. Tree Physiology, 34:686-700.
Vanderhoof, M., Williams, C.A., Ghimire, B., & Rogan, J. (2013) Impact of mountain pine beetle outbreaks on forest albedo and TOA radiative forcing , as derived from MODIS, Rocky Mountains, USA. Journal of Geophysical Research-Biogeosciences, 118:1461-1471.
Vanderhoof, M., Williams, C.A., Pasay, M., & Ghimire, B. (2013) Controls on the rate of CO2 emission from woody debris in clearcut and coniferous forest environments of central Massachusetts. Biogeochemistry, 114:299-311.
Ghimire, B., Williams, C.A, Collatz, G.J., & Vanderhoof, M. (2012) Fire induced regional carbon emissions and fluxes derived by parameterizing post-fire carbon flux trajectories for western United States forests: Accounting for variation across forest types, fire severity, and carbon pools. Journal of Geophysical Research-Biogeosciences, 117:1-29.
Vanderhoof, M. , B. Holzman & C. Rogers. (2009) Predicting the distribution of perennial pepperweed, Lepidium latifolium, San Francisco Bay Area, California. Invasive Plant Science and Management, 2(3):260-269.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 24
The Landsat Burned Area products for the conterminous United States (ver. 3.0, March 2022) The Landsat Burned Area products for the conterminous United States (ver. 3.0, March 2022)
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has developed and implemented an algorithm that identifies burned areas in temporally-dense time series of Landsat Analysis Ready Data (ARD) scenes to produce the Landsat Burned Area Products. The algorithm makes use of predictors derived from individual ARD Landsat scenes, lagged reference conditions, and change metrics between the scene and reference...
Data release for tracking rates of post-fire conifer regeneration distinct from deciduous vegetation recovery across the western U.S. Data release for tracking rates of post-fire conifer regeneration distinct from deciduous vegetation recovery across the western U.S.
Post-fire shifts in vegetation composition will have broad ecological impacts. However, information characterizing post-fire recovery patterns and their drivers are lacking over large spatial extents. In this analysis we used Landsat imagery collected when snow cover (SCS) was present, in combination with growing season (GS) imagery, to distinguish evergreen vegetation from deciduous...
Tracking disturbance and inundation to identify wetland loss Tracking disturbance and inundation to identify wetland loss
Global trends in wetland degradation and loss have created an urgency to monitor wetland extent, as well as track the distribution and causes of wetland loss. Satellite imagery can be used to monitor wetlands over time, but few efforts have attempted to distinguish anthropogenic wetland loss from climate-driven variability in wetland extent. We present an approach to concurrently track...
Data Release for the validation of the USGS Landsat Burned Area Product across the conterminous U.S. Data Release for the validation of the USGS Landsat Burned Area Product across the conterminous U.S.
Complete and accurate burned area map data are needed to document spatial and temporal patterns of fires, to quantify their drivers, and to assess the impacts on human and natural systems. In this study, we developed the Landsat Burned Area (BA) algorithm, an update from the Landsat Burned Area Essential Climate Variable (BAECV) algorithm. We present the BA algorithm and products...
Data release for Influence of multi-decadal land use, irrigation practices and climate on riparian corridors across the Upper Missouri River headwaters basin, Montana Data release for Influence of multi-decadal land use, irrigation practices and climate on riparian corridors across the Upper Missouri River headwaters basin, Montana
The Upper Missouri River headwaters (UMH) basin (36 400 km2 ) depends on its river corridors to support irrigated agriculture and world-class trout fisheries. We evaluated trends (1984-2016) in riparian wetness, an indicator of the riparian condition, in peak irrigation months (June, July and August) for 158 km2 of riparian area across the basin using the Landsat normalized difference...
Data release for it matters when you measure it: using snow-cover Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to isolate post-fire conifer regeneration Data release for it matters when you measure it: using snow-cover Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to isolate post-fire conifer regeneration
Landsat Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is commonly used to monitor post-fire green-up; however, most studies do not distinguish new growth of conifer from deciduous or herbaceous species, despite potential consequences for local climate, carbon and wildlife. We found that dual season (growing and snow cover) NDVI improved our ability to distinguish conifer tree presence...
Filter Total Items: 43
Wind turbine wakes can impact down-wind vegetation greenness Wind turbine wakes can impact down-wind vegetation greenness
Global wind energy has expanded 5-fold since 2010 and is predicted to expand another 8–10-fold over the next 30 years. Wakes generated by wind turbines can alter downwind microclimates and potentially downwind vegetation. However, the design of past studies has made it difficult to isolate the impact of wake effects on vegetation from land cover change. We used hourly wind data to model...
Authors
James E. Diffendorfer, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Zachary H. Ancona
Mapping wetland burned area from Sentinel-2 across the southeastern United States and its contributions relative to Landsat 8 (2016-2019) Mapping wetland burned area from Sentinel-2 across the southeastern United States and its contributions relative to Landsat 8 (2016-2019)
Prescribed fires and wildfires are common in wetland ecosystems across the Southeastern United States. However, the wetland burned area has been chronically underestimated across the region due to (1) spectral confusion between open water and burned area, (2) rapid post-fire vegetation regrowth, and (3) high annual precipitation limiting clear-sky satellite observations. We developed a...
Authors
Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Todd Hawbaker, Casey Teske, Andrea Ku, Joe Noble, Joshua J. Picotte
Using the Landsat Burned Area products to derive fire history relevant for fire management and conservation in the state of Florida, southeastern USA Using the Landsat Burned Area products to derive fire history relevant for fire management and conservation in the state of Florida, southeastern USA
Development of comprehensive spatially explicit fire occurrence data remains one of the most critical needs for fire managers globally, and especially for conservation across the southeastern United States. Not only are many endangered species and ecosystems in that region reliant on frequent fire, but fire risk analysis, prescribed fire planning, and fire behavior modeling are sensitive...
Authors
Casey Teske, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Todd Hawbaker, Joe Noble, J. Kevin Hires
New operational national satellite burned area product New operational national satellite burned area product
Introduction Lack of consistent spatial and temporal fire information with relevant spatial resolution hinders land management and broad-scale assessments of fire activity, especially in the eastern United States and the Great Plains where fi re is important ecologically and culturally. Remote sensing can be used to monitor fi re activity, augment existing fi re data, and fill...
Authors
Todd Hawbaker, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Gail L. Schmidt, Yen-Ju G. Beal, Joshua J. Picotte, Joshua Takacs, Jeff T. Falgout, John L. Dwyer
Development of a standard database of reference sites for validating global burned area products Development of a standard database of reference sites for validating global burned area products
Over the past 2 decades, several global burned area products have been produced and released to the public. However, the accuracy assessment of such products largely depends on the availability of reliable reference data that currently do not exist on a global scale or whose production require a high level of dedication of project resources. The important lack of reference data for the...
Authors
Magi Franquesa, Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Dimitris Stavrakoudis, Ioannis Gitas, Ekhi Roteta, Marc Padilla, Emilio Chuvieco
Tracking rates of postfire conifer regeneration vs. deciduous vegetation recovery across the western United States Tracking rates of postfire conifer regeneration vs. deciduous vegetation recovery across the western United States
Postfire shifts in vegetation composition will have broad ecological impacts. However, information characterizing postfire recovery patterns and their drivers are lacking over large spatial extents. In this analysis, we used Landsat imagery collected when snow cover (SCS) was present, in combination with growing season (GS) imagery, to distinguish evergreen vegetation from deciduous...
Authors
Melanie K. Vanderhoof, Todd Hawbaker, Andrea Ming Ku, Kyle Merriam, Erin Berryman, Megan Cattau
Non-USGS Publications**
Vanderhoof, M.K., Alexander, L.C. (2016) The role of lake expansion in altering the wetland landscape of the Prairie Pothole Region. Wetlands, 36(2):309-321, DOI:10.1007/s13157-015-0728-1.
U.S. EPA (2015) Connectivity of Streams and Wetlands to Downstream Waters: A Review and Synthesis of the Scientific Evidence (Final Report). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-14/475F. (co-author on report)
Vanderhoof, M., Williams, C. (2015) Persistence of evapotranspiration impacts from mountain pine beetle outbreaks in lodgepole pine forests, south-central Rocky Mountains. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 200:78-91.
Ghimire, B., Williams, C.A., Collatz, G.J., Vanderhoof, M., Rogan, J., Kulaowski, D., Masek, J.G. (2015) Large carbon release legacy from bark beetle outbreaks across the Western United States. Global Change Biology, 21(8):3087-3101.
Vanderhoof, M., Williams, C.A., Shuai, Y., Jarvis, D., Kulakowski, D., Masek, J. (2014) Albedo-induced radiative forcing from mountain pine beetle outbreaks in forests, south-central Rocky Mountains: magnitude, persistence, and relation to outbreak severity. Biogeosciences, 11:563-575.
Williams, C., Vanderhoof, M., Khomik, M., Ghimire, B. (2014). Post-clearcut dynamics of carbon, water and energy changes in a mid-latitude temperate, deciduous broadleaf forest environment. Global Change Biology, 20(3):992-1007.
Khomik, M., Williams, C.A., Vanderhoof, M.K., MacLean, R., Dillen, S.Y. (2014). On the causes of rising gross ecosystem productivity in a regenerating clearcut environment: leaf area, species composition, or environmental conditions. Tree Physiology, 34:686-700.
Vanderhoof, M., Williams, C.A., Ghimire, B., & Rogan, J. (2013) Impact of mountain pine beetle outbreaks on forest albedo and TOA radiative forcing , as derived from MODIS, Rocky Mountains, USA. Journal of Geophysical Research-Biogeosciences, 118:1461-1471.
Vanderhoof, M., Williams, C.A., Pasay, M., & Ghimire, B. (2013) Controls on the rate of CO2 emission from woody debris in clearcut and coniferous forest environments of central Massachusetts. Biogeochemistry, 114:299-311.
Ghimire, B., Williams, C.A, Collatz, G.J., & Vanderhoof, M. (2012) Fire induced regional carbon emissions and fluxes derived by parameterizing post-fire carbon flux trajectories for western United States forests: Accounting for variation across forest types, fire severity, and carbon pools. Journal of Geophysical Research-Biogeosciences, 117:1-29.
Vanderhoof, M. , B. Holzman & C. Rogers. (2009) Predicting the distribution of perennial pepperweed, Lepidium latifolium, San Francisco Bay Area, California. Invasive Plant Science and Management, 2(3):260-269.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.