Prasad S. Thenkabail, PhD
Dr. Prasad S. Thenkabail, Senior Scientist (ST), United States Geological Survey (USGS), is a world-recognized expert in remote sensing science with major contributions in the field sustained for nearly 40 years. Dr. Thenkabail’s career scientific achievements can be gauged by successfully making the list of world’s top 1% of scientists across fields (22 scientific fields and 176 sub-fields).
Global Food Security-Support Analysis Data at 30 m (GFSAD)
Global Hyperspectral Imaging Spectroscopy of Agricultural-Crops & Vegetation (GHISA)
Remote Sensing of Agriculture, Water, and Food Security
- Download Landsat Derived Global Rainfed and Irrigated Cropland Product at 30m (…
- Download Landsat Derived Global Cropland Extent Product at 30m (GCEP30) from LP…
- Browse Full Resolution View of Global Cropland Products
- Global Crop Water Productivity and Savings through waterSMART (GCWP)
- Global Irrigated and Rainfed Cropland Mask at 1km
- Global Cropland Dominance Product at 1km
Dr. Thenkabail has conducted pioneering research in hyperspectral remote sensing of vegetation and in that of global croplands and their water use for food security. In hyperspectral remote sensing he has done cutting-edge research with wide implications in advancing remote sensing science in application to agriculture and vegetation. This body of work led to more than ten peer-reviewed research publications with high impact. For example, a single paper entitled “Hyperspectral vegetation indices and their relationships with agricultural crop characteristics” has received 1500 citations (3/14/23). In studies of global croplands for food and water security, he has led the release of the world’s first Landsat-derived: 1. global cropland extent product @ 30m (GCEP30), and 2. global rainfed and irrigated area product @ 30m (LGRIP30). This work demonstrates a “paradigm shift” in how remote sensing science is conducted. As per Google Scholar, the papers Dr. Thenkabail's research are cited 14,235 times. His h-index is 58 and i10-index is 113.
Dr. Thenkabail’s contributions to series of leading edited books on remote sensing science places him as a world leader in remote sensing science advances. He edited three-volume book entitled Remote Sensing Handbook published by Taylor and Francis, with 82 chapters and more than 2000 pages, widely considered a “magnus opus” encyclopedic standard reference for students, scholars, practitioners, and major experts in remote sensing science. He has recently completed editing Hyperspectral Remote Sensing of Vegetation published books by Taylor and Francis in four volumes with 50 chapters. This is the second edition that is currently in press and is a follow-up on the earlier single-volume Hyperspectral Remote Sensing of Vegetation. He has also edited a book on Remote Sensing of Global Croplands for Food Security.
He obtained his PhD from the Ohio State University in 1992 and has 168 publications including 9 books, 146 peer-reviewed journal articles, and 13 major data releases. Dr. Thenkabail is at the center of rendering scientific service to the world’s remote sensing community in roles that include Editor-in-Chief (2011-present) of Remote Sensing Open Access Journal and Associate Editor (2017-present) of American Society’s Journal Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing. Dr. Thenkabail was recognized as Fellow of the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) in 2023. His scientific papers have won several awards over the years demonstrating world class highest quality research. These include: 2023 Talbert Abrams Grand Award, the highest scientific paper award of the ASPRS, 2015 ASPRS ERDAS award for best scientific paper in remote sensing, and 1994 Autometric Award for the outstanding paper in remote sensing. He was a Landsat Science Team Member (2007-2011).
Professional Experience
2022 - present - Senior Scientist (ST), United States Geological Survey (USGS)
Oct. 2008-2022 - USGS: Supervisory Research Geographer-15 (2017-present), Research Geographer-15 (2011-2017), Research Geographer-14 (2008-2011), United States Geological Survey (USGS), Flagstaff, AZ.USA.
March 2003-Sept. 2008 - IWMI: Principal Researcher, Global Research Division group and Head of Remote Sensing and GIS Unit, International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Colombo, Sri Lanka.
April 1997-March 2003 - Yale University: Associate Research Scientist, Center for Earth Observation, Yale University, New Haven, CT,USA.
Nov. 1995-March 1997 - ICIMOD: Remote Sensing Specialist, International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Kathmandu, Nepal.
July 1992-Nov. 1995 - IITA: Remote Sensing Specialist, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Sept. 1998-June 1992 - OSU: Graduate Research Assistant, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
Dec. 1984-Nov. 1986 - Mysore and Bangalore University: Teaching hydraulics and water resources, India.
The countries he has worked in include China, Cambodia, Indonesia, Israel, Syria, United States, Canada, Brazil, Uzbekistan, Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Republic of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Cote d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Togo, Mozambique, and South Africa.
Education and Certifications
1992 - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Agricultural Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
1983 - Master of Engineering (M.E.) in Hydraulics and Water Resources Engineering, Mysore University (India).
1981 - Bachelor of Civil Engineering (B.E.), Mysore University (India).
Affiliations and Memberships*
Editor-in-Chief, Remote Sensing Open Access Journal; 2011-present.
Associate Editor, American Society of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing (PE&RS), a Journal of the Imaging and Geospatial Information Society (ASPRS).
Editorial Advisory Board, International Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) Journal of Photo. & Remote Sensing, 2014-present.
Editorial Board Member, Remote Sensing of Environment (2007-2016)
Core member, NASA South/Southeast Asia Research Initiative (SARI): 2014-present
Member, American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (1988-present)
Chair: International Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) Working Group WG VIII/7: Land cover and its dynamics, including Agricultural & Urban Land Use (2013-2016)
Global Coordinator, Committee for Earth Observing Systems Agriculture Societal Beneficial Areas (CEOA SBA) (2010-2013)
Co-lead, IEEE “Water for the World” (2007-2011)
Member, Landsat Science Team (2007-2011)
Honors and Awards
2023 Fellow, American Society of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing (ASPRS)
2023 Talbert Abrahms Grand Award, highest paper award from American Society of Photogrammetric Enginering and Remote Sensing (ASPRS).
2022 - PESEP Scholar. The NASA-ISRO Professional Engineer and Scientist Exchange Program (PESEP). USA (NASA) and India (ISRO) scientific exchange scientist for 2022-2023.
2020 - Proposal evaluation panel for Israeli Ministry of Science and Technology, to their bi-national Italy-Israel joint laboratory in Precision Agriculture.
2019 - Advisory Board member, Taylor and Francis Inc., online library collection to support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).
2019 - USGS STAR award for supervision
2019 - Member, NASA Surface Biology Geology (SBG)-Applications. For the SBG hyperspectral remote sensing mission (replacing former HyspIRI program).
2019 - Member, NASA Calibration and Validation Working Group. For the SBG hyperspectral remote sensing mission (replacing former HyspIRI program).
2019 - USGS 10-year service recognition
2018 - The Excellent Reviewer of Remote Sensing of Environment
2018 - Honored by the Arabian Gulf University, Bahrain and the Dubai-based International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) for giving the keynote lecture.
2016 - NASA Group Achievement Award, 2016. (Member of Team) Fallowed Area Map
2015 - ASPRS Best Scientific Paper Award, 2015: ASPRS ERDAS award for best scientific paper in remote sensing (given annually for the papers published in American Society of Photogrammetry
2015 - Task Force Member NASA, SARI, 2015-present. South Asia Regional Initiative (SARI), A response to regional needs in Land Cover/Land Use Change (LCLUC) Science and Education (NASA)
2015 - Innovations Inventory, PARIS21, 2015: 'Remote Sensing Data for Drought Assessment and Monitoring' monograph authors (as first author) is in the PARIS21.
2013 - Panel chair, 2013, USGS RGE. For the Spring 2013 GIS and Remote Sensing USGS Research Grade Evaluation (RGE) panel.
2008 - ASPRS President’s award for practical papers: American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) John I. Davidson President’s Award for practical papers, 2008.
2007 - Special achievement in GIS award from ESRI, awarded by ESRI President Mr. Jack Dangermond during the 2007 annual ESRI conference in San Diego.
2006 - Best team award for my remote sensing and GIS team @ the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) during Institute’s Annual Research Meeting 2006.
2005 - Best paper award (5 best paper awards given) by International Water Management Institute (IWMI) during Institute’s Annual Research Meeting 2005.
2004 - Best paper award (5 best paper awards given) by International Water Management Institute (IWMI) during Institute’s Annual Research Meeting 2004.
2001 - Member, Scientific Advisory Board, Rapideye, a Private German Satellite Company.
1994 - Autometric award for outstanding paper by American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS).
Abstracts and Presentations
As a result of Dr. Thenkabail’s scientific accomplishments, standing, and stature, he is a highly sought-after speaker. Since 2011, he has given 117 talks (averaging ~12 per year) of which 40% (47/117) were invited. He has been invited as a speaker in Bahrain, Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and various places in USA (e.g., Purdue, OSU).
Science and Products
Dr. Thenkabail’s contributions to series of leading edited books on remote sensing science places him as a world leader in remote sensing science advances. He edited three-volume book entitled Remote Sensing Handbook published by Taylor and Francis, with 82 chapters and more than 2000 pages, widely considered a “magnus opus” encyclopedic standard reference for students, scholars, practitioners, and major experts in remote sensing science.
He has recently completed editing Hyperspectral Remote Sensing of Vegetation published books by Taylor and Francis in four volumes with 50 chapters: This is the second edition that is currently in press and is a follow-up on the earlier single-volume Hyperspectral Remote Sensing of Vegetation (also published by Taylor and Francis Inc.). He has also edited a book on Remote Sensing of Global Croplands for Food Security (Taylor and Francis). These books are widely used and widely referenced in institutions worldwide.
Automated cropland mapping of continental Africa using Google Earth Engine cloud computing
Fallow-land Algorithm based on Neighborhood and TemporalAnomalies (FANTA) to map planted versus fallowed croplands usingMODIS data to assist in drought studies leading to water and foodsecurity assessments
A land data assimilation system for sub-Saharan Africa food and water security applications
A software tool for rapid flood inundation mapping
Mapping rice-fallow cropland areas for short-season grain legumes intensification in South Asia using MODIS 250 m time-series data
A Unified Cropland Layer at 250-m for global agriculture monitoring
Hyperspectral narrowband and multispectral broadband indices for remote sensing of crop evapotranspiration and its components (transpiration and soil evaporation)
The climate hazards infrared precipitation with stations—a new environmental record for monitoring extremes
Remote sensing systems – Platforms and sensors: Aerial, satellites, UAVs, optical, radar, and LiDAR
Inland valley wetland cultivation and preservation for africa’s green and blue revolution using multi-sensor remote sensing
Water productivity studies from earth observation data: characterization, modeling and mapping water use and water productivity
Remote sensing of land resources: Monitoring, modeling, and mapping advances over the last 50 years and a vision for the future
Led the release of the world’s first Landsat 30-m derived global cropland extent product.The data is already widely used worldwide and is downloadable from the NASA\USGS LP DAAC site:
https://lpdaac.usgs.gov/news/release-of-gfsad-30-meter-cropland-extent-products/
Science and Products
- Science
- Data
- Publications
Dr. Thenkabail’s contributions to series of leading edited books on remote sensing science places him as a world leader in remote sensing science advances. He edited three-volume book entitled Remote Sensing Handbook published by Taylor and Francis, with 82 chapters and more than 2000 pages, widely considered a “magnus opus” encyclopedic standard reference for students, scholars, practitioners, and major experts in remote sensing science.
He has recently completed editing Hyperspectral Remote Sensing of Vegetation published books by Taylor and Francis in four volumes with 50 chapters: This is the second edition that is currently in press and is a follow-up on the earlier single-volume Hyperspectral Remote Sensing of Vegetation (also published by Taylor and Francis Inc.). He has also edited a book on Remote Sensing of Global Croplands for Food Security (Taylor and Francis). These books are widely used and widely referenced in institutions worldwide.
Filter Total Items: 75Automated cropland mapping of continental Africa using Google Earth Engine cloud computing
The automation of agricultural mapping using satellite-derived remotely sensed data remains a challenge in Africa because of the heterogeneous and fragmental landscape, complex crop cycles, and limited access to local knowledge. Currently, consistent, continent-wide routine cropland mapping of Africa does not exist, with most studies focused either on certain portions of the continent or at most aAuthorsJun Xiong, Prasad S. Thenkabail, Murali Krishna Gumma, Pardhasaradhi G. Teluguntla, Justin Poehnelt, Russell G. Congalton, Kamini Yadav, David ThauFallow-land Algorithm based on Neighborhood and TemporalAnomalies (FANTA) to map planted versus fallowed croplands usingMODIS data to assist in drought studies leading to water and foodsecurity assessments
An important metric to monitor for optimizing water use in agricultural areas is the amount of cropland left fallowed, or unplanted. Fallowed croplands are difficult to model because they have many expressions; for example, they can be managed and remain free of vegetation or be abandoned and become weedy if the climate for that season permits. We used 250 m, 8-day composite Moderate Resolution ImAuthorsCynthia Wallace, Prasad S. Thenkabail, Jesus R. Rodriguez, Melinda K. BrownA land data assimilation system for sub-Saharan Africa food and water security applications
Seasonal agricultural drought monitoring systems, which rely on satellite remote sensing and land surface models (LSMs), are important for disaster risk reduction and famine early warning. These systems require the best available weather inputs, as well as a long-term historical record to contextualize current observations. This article introduces the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NETAuthorsAmy McNally, Kristi Arsenault, Sujay Kumar, Shraddhanand Shukla, Pete Peterson, Shugong Wang, Chris Funk, Christa Peters-Lidard, James VerdinA software tool for rapid flood inundation mapping
The GIS Flood Tool (GFT) was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey with support from the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance to provide a means for production of reconnaissance-level flood inundation mapping for data-sparse and resource-limited areas of the world. The GFT has also attracted interest as a tool for rapid assessment flood inundatioAuthorsJames Verdin, Kristine Verdin, Melissa L. Mathis, Tamuka Magadzire, Eric Kabuchanga, Mark Woodbury, Hussein GadainMapping rice-fallow cropland areas for short-season grain legumes intensification in South Asia using MODIS 250 m time-series data
The goal of this study was to map rainfed and irrigated rice-fallow cropland areas across South Asia, using MODIS 250 m time-series data and identify where the farming system may be intensified by the inclusion of a short-season crop during the fallow period. Rice-fallow cropland areas are those areas where rice is grown during the kharif growing season (June–October), followed by a fallow duringAuthorsMurali Krishna Gumma, Prasad S. Thenkabail, Pardhasaradhi G. Teluguntla, Mahesh N. Rao, Irshad A. Mohammed, Anthony M. WhitbreadA Unified Cropland Layer at 250-m for global agriculture monitoring
Accurate and timely information on the global cropland extent is critical for food security monitoring, water management and earth system modeling. Principally, it allows for analyzing satellite image time-series to assess the crop conditions and permits isolation of the agricultural component to focus on food security and impacts of various climatic scenarios. However, despite its critical importAuthorsFrançois Waldner, Steffen Fritz, Antonio Di Gregorio, Dmitry Plotnikov, Sergey Bartalev, Nataliia Kussul, Peng Gong, Prasad S. Thenkabail, Gerard Hazeu, Igor Klein, Fabian Löw, Jukka Miettinen, Vinay Kumar Dadhwal, Céline Lamarche, Sophie Bontemps, Pierre DefournyHyperspectral narrowband and multispectral broadband indices for remote sensing of crop evapotranspiration and its components (transpiration and soil evaporation)
Evapotranspiration (ET) is an important component of micro- and macro-scale climatic processes. In agriculture, estimates of ET are frequently used to monitor droughts, schedule irrigation, and assess crop water productivity over large areas. Currently, in situ measurements of ET are difficult to scale up for regional applications, so remote sensing technology has been increasingly used to estimatAuthorsMichael T. Marshall, Prasad S. Thenkabail, Trent Biggs, Kirk PostThe climate hazards infrared precipitation with stations—a new environmental record for monitoring extremes
The Climate Hazards group Infrared Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) dataset builds on previous approaches to ‘smart’ interpolation techniques and high resolution, long period of record precipitation estimates based on infrared Cold Cloud Duration (CCD) observations. The algorithm i) is built around a 0.05° climatology that incorporates satellite information to represent sparsely gauged locatioAuthorsChris Funk, Pete Peterson, Martin Landsfeld, Diego Pedreros, James Verdin, Shraddhanand Shukla, Gregory Husak, James Rowland, Laura Harrison, Andrew Hoell, Joel MichaelsenRemote sensing systems – Platforms and sensors: Aerial, satellites, UAVs, optical, radar, and LiDAR
The American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing defined remote sensing as the measurement or acquisition of information of some property of an object or phenomenon, by a recording device that is not in physical or intimate contact with the object or phenomenon under study (Colwell et al., 1983). Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) in its geographic information system (GIS) diAuthorsSudhanshu S. Panda, Mahesh N. Rao, Prasad S. Thenkabail, James E. FitzeraldInland valley wetland cultivation and preservation for africa’s green and blue revolution using multi-sensor remote sensing
No abstract available.AuthorsPrasad S. Thenkabail, Pardhasaradhi G. TeluguntlaWater productivity studies from earth observation data: characterization, modeling and mapping water use and water productivity
No abstract available.AuthorsAntônio de C. Teixeira, Fernando B. T. Hernandez, Morris Scherer-Warren, Ricardo G. Andrade, Janice F. Leivas, Daniel C. Victoria, Edson L. Bolfe, Prasad S. Thenkabail, Renato A. M. FrancoRemote sensing of land resources: Monitoring, modeling, and mapping advances over the last 50 years and a vision for the future
No abstract available.AuthorsPrasad S. Thenkabail - News
Led the release of the world’s first Landsat 30-m derived global cropland extent product.The data is already widely used worldwide and is downloadable from the NASA\USGS LP DAAC site:
https://lpdaac.usgs.gov/news/release-of-gfsad-30-meter-cropland-extent-products/
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government