Ryan Reker
Ryan is a geographer and the mission manager of the Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC) at the Earth Resources and Observation Science Center (EROS) in Sioux Falls, SD
Ryan started his professional career at USGS EROS as a contractor to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), compiling examples of environmental change using remote sensing imagery for science communications. He conducted biological planning and bird habitat inventory activities in the Rainwater Basin region of Nebraska, mapping wetland conditions and leading an early LIDAR collection of Nebraska & Kansas to aid conservation planning. Returning to USGS EROS, he conducted land cover modeling of both historical and future U.S. land use for time periods when remote sensing data are not available. Shifting to a project management role, he supported the NLCD, LCMAP, and RCMAP land cover initiatives and now the LP DAAC at USGS EROS.
Professional Experience
LP DAAC Mission Manager (2023 – Present)
U.S. Geological Survey, Earth Resources Observation and Science Center (EROS), Sioux Falls, SDTask Manager, Land Cover Programs (2018 – 2023)
KBR Inc., Contractor to the USGS EROS CenterResearch Geographer (2010 – 2018)
ASRC Research and Technology Solutions, Contractor to the USGS EROS CenterEvaluation Coordinator, Rainwater Basin Joint Venture (2004 – 2010)
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Grand Island, NEScientist, United Nations Environment Programme (2000-2001)
Raytheon Co., Contractor to the USGS EROS Center
Education and Certifications
Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Science (GIScience), Kansas State University
Master of Science in Geography, Kansas State University
Bachelor of Science in Geography, South Dakota State University
Affiliations and Memberships*
North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) Science Support Team (NSST) (2004 – 2010)
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 14
Conterminous United States land-cover change (1985-2016): New insights from annual time series
Sample-based estimates augmented by complete coverage land-cover maps were used to estimate area and describe patterns of annual land-cover change across the conterminous United States (CONUS) between 1985 and 2016. Most of the CONUS land cover remained stable in terms of net class change over this time, but a substantial gross change dynamic was captured by the annual and cumulative...
Authors
Roger F. Auch, Danika Fay Wellington, Janis L. Taylor, Stephen V. Stehman, Heather J. Tollerud, Jesslyn F. Brown, Thomas Loveland, Bruce Pengra, Josephine Horton, Zhe Zhu, Alemayehu Midekisa, Kristi Sayler, George Z. Xian, Christopher Barnes, Ryan R. Reker
Implementation of the CCDC algorithm to produce the LCMAP Collection 1.0 annual land surface change product
The increasing availability of high-quality remote sensing data and advanced technologies have spurred land cover mapping to characterize land change from local to global scales. However, most land change datasets either span multiple decades at a local scale or cover limited time over a larger geographic extent. Here, we present a new land cover and land surface change dataset created...
Authors
George Z. Xian, Kelcy Smith, Danika F. Wellington, Josephine Horton, Qiang Zhou, Congcong Li, Roger F. Auch, Jesslyn F. Brown, Zhe Zhu, Ryan R. Reker
Lessons learned implementing an operational continuous United States national land change monitoring capability: The Land Change Monitoring, Assessment, and Projection (LCMAP) approach
Growing demands for temporally specific information on land surface change are fueling a new generation of maps and statistics that can contribute to understanding geographic and temporal patterns of change across large regions, provide input into a wide range of environmental modeling studies, clarify the drivers of change, and provide more timely information for land managers. To meet...
Authors
Jesslyn F. Brown, Heather J. Tollerud, Christopher Barber, Qiang Zhou, John L. Dwyer, James Vogelmann, Thomas Loveland, Curtis Woodcock, Stephen V. Stehman, Zhe Zhu, Bruce Pengra, Kelcy Smith, Josephine Horton, George Z. Xian, Roger F. Auch, Terry L. Sohl, Kristi Sayler, Alisa L. Gallant, Daniel Zelenak, Ryan R. Reker, Jennifer R. Rover
Application of a regional climate model to assess changes in the climatology of the Eastern US and Cuba associated with historic landcover change
We examine the annual, seasonal, monthly, and diurnal climate responses to the land use change (LUC) in eastern United States and Cuba during four epochs (1650, 1850, 1920, and 1992) with ensemble simulations conducted with the RegCM4 regional climate model that includes the Biosphere Atmosphere Transfer Scheme (BATS1e) surface physics package (Dickinson et al., 1993). We derived the...
Authors
Steven W. Hostetler, R Reker, Jay R. Alder, Thomas Loveland, Debra A. Willard, Christopher E. Bernhardt, Eric T. Sundquist, Renee L. Thompson
Modeled historical land use and land cover for the conterminous United States
The landscape of the conterminous United States has changed dramatically over the last 200 years, with agricultural land use, urban expansion, forestry, and other anthropogenic activities altering land cover across vast swaths of the country. While land use and land cover (LULC) models have been developed to model potential future LULC change, few efforts have focused on recreating...
Authors
Terry L. Sohl, Ryan R. Reker, Michelle A. Bouchard, Kristi Sayler, Jordan Dornbierer, Steve Wika, Robert Quenzer, Aaron M. Friesz
Modelling regional land change scenarios to assess land abandonment and reforestation dynamics in the Pyrenees (France)
Over the last decades and centuries, European mountain landscapes have experienced substantial transformations. Natural and anthropogenic LULC changes (land use and land cover changes), especially agro-pastoral activities, have directly influenced the spatial organization and composition of European mountain landscapes. For the past sixty years, natural reforestation has been occurring...
Authors
Laure Vacquie, Thomas Houet, Terry L. Sohl, Ryan R. Reker, Kristi Sayler
Using Landsat imagery to detect, monitor, and project net landscape change
Detailed landscape information is a necessary component to bird habitat conservation planning. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center has been providing information on the Earth’s surface for over 40 years via the continuous series of Landsat satellites. In addition to operating, processing, and disseminating satellite images, EROS is the...
Authors
Ryan R. Reker, Terry L. Sohl, Alisa L. Gallant
Spatially explicit modeling of 1992-2100 land cover and forest stand age for the conterminous United States
Information on future land-use and land-cover (LULC) change is needed to analyze the impact of LULC change on ecological processes. The U.S. Geological Survey has produced spatially explicit, thematically detailed LULC projections for the conterminous United States. Four qualitative and quantitative scenarios of LULC change were developed, with characteristics consistent with the...
Authors
Terry L. Sohl, Kristi Sayler, Michelle Bouchard, Ryan R. Reker, Aaron M. Friesz, Stacie L. Bennett, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Rachel R. Sleeter, Tamara Wilson, Christopher E. Soulard, Michelle Knuppe, Travis Van Hofwegen
Land-use and land-cover change in three corn belt ecoregions: Similarities and differences
Land use categorical changes, though not as numerous as one might suspect, vary by type within the three designated ecozones of the Corn Belt with the westernmost zone showing the most temporary change vis-a-vis the more permanent changes taking place in the eastern and central zones.
Authors
Roger F. Auch, Chris R. Laingen, Mark A. Drummond, Kristi Sayler, Ryan R. Reker, Michelle A. Bouchard, Jeffrey J. Danielson
Scenarios of land use and land cover change in the conterminous United States: Utilizing the special report on emission scenarios at ecoregional scales
Global environmental change scenarios have typically provided projections of land use and land cover for a relatively small number of regions or using a relatively coarse resolution spatial grid, and for only a few major sectors. The coarseness of global projections, in both spatial and thematic dimensions, often limits their direct utility at scales useful for environmental management...
Authors
Benjamin M. Sleeter, Terry L. Sohl, Michelle A. Bouchard, Ryan R. Reker, Christopher E. Soulard, William Acevedo, Glenn E. Griffith, Rachel R. Sleeter, Roger F. Auch, Kristi Sayler, Stephen Prisley, Zhi-Liang Zhu
Spatially explicit land-use and land-cover scenarios for the Great Plains of the United States
The Great Plains of the United States has undergone extensive land-use and land-cover change in the past 150 years, with much of the once vast native grasslands and wetlands converted to agricultural crops, and much of the unbroken prairie now heavily grazed. Future land-use change in the region could have dramatic impacts on ecological resources and processes. A scenario-based modeling...
Authors
Terry L. Sohl, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Kristi Sayler, Michelle A. Bouchard, Ryan R. Reker, Stacie L. Bennett, Rachel R. Sleeter, Ronald L. Kanengieter, Zhi-Liang Zhu
A land-use and land-cover modeling strategy to support a national assessment of carbon stocks and fluxes
Changes in land use, land cover, disturbance regimes, and land management have considerable influence on carbon and greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes within ecosystems. Through targeted land-use and land-management activities, ecosystems can be managed to enhance carbon sequestration and mitigate fluxes of other GHGs. National-scale, comprehensive analyses of carbon sequestration potential by...
Authors
Terry L. Sohl, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Zhi-Liang Zhu, Kristi Sayler, Stacie Bennett, Michelle Bouchard, Ryan R. Reker, Todd Hawbaker, Anne Wein, Shu-Guang Liu, Ronald Kanengieter, William Acevedo
Non-USGS Publications**
**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.
Conterminous United States Land Cover Projections - 1992 to 2100
The USGS's FORE-SCE model was used to produce land-use and land-cover (LULC) projections for the conterminous United States. The projections were originally created as part of the "LandCarbon" project, an effort to understand biological carbon sequestration potential in the United States. However, the projections are being used for a wide variety of purposes, including analyses of the...
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 14
Conterminous United States land-cover change (1985-2016): New insights from annual time series
Sample-based estimates augmented by complete coverage land-cover maps were used to estimate area and describe patterns of annual land-cover change across the conterminous United States (CONUS) between 1985 and 2016. Most of the CONUS land cover remained stable in terms of net class change over this time, but a substantial gross change dynamic was captured by the annual and cumulative...
Authors
Roger F. Auch, Danika Fay Wellington, Janis L. Taylor, Stephen V. Stehman, Heather J. Tollerud, Jesslyn F. Brown, Thomas Loveland, Bruce Pengra, Josephine Horton, Zhe Zhu, Alemayehu Midekisa, Kristi Sayler, George Z. Xian, Christopher Barnes, Ryan R. Reker
Implementation of the CCDC algorithm to produce the LCMAP Collection 1.0 annual land surface change product
The increasing availability of high-quality remote sensing data and advanced technologies have spurred land cover mapping to characterize land change from local to global scales. However, most land change datasets either span multiple decades at a local scale or cover limited time over a larger geographic extent. Here, we present a new land cover and land surface change dataset created...
Authors
George Z. Xian, Kelcy Smith, Danika F. Wellington, Josephine Horton, Qiang Zhou, Congcong Li, Roger F. Auch, Jesslyn F. Brown, Zhe Zhu, Ryan R. Reker
Lessons learned implementing an operational continuous United States national land change monitoring capability: The Land Change Monitoring, Assessment, and Projection (LCMAP) approach
Growing demands for temporally specific information on land surface change are fueling a new generation of maps and statistics that can contribute to understanding geographic and temporal patterns of change across large regions, provide input into a wide range of environmental modeling studies, clarify the drivers of change, and provide more timely information for land managers. To meet...
Authors
Jesslyn F. Brown, Heather J. Tollerud, Christopher Barber, Qiang Zhou, John L. Dwyer, James Vogelmann, Thomas Loveland, Curtis Woodcock, Stephen V. Stehman, Zhe Zhu, Bruce Pengra, Kelcy Smith, Josephine Horton, George Z. Xian, Roger F. Auch, Terry L. Sohl, Kristi Sayler, Alisa L. Gallant, Daniel Zelenak, Ryan R. Reker, Jennifer R. Rover
Application of a regional climate model to assess changes in the climatology of the Eastern US and Cuba associated with historic landcover change
We examine the annual, seasonal, monthly, and diurnal climate responses to the land use change (LUC) in eastern United States and Cuba during four epochs (1650, 1850, 1920, and 1992) with ensemble simulations conducted with the RegCM4 regional climate model that includes the Biosphere Atmosphere Transfer Scheme (BATS1e) surface physics package (Dickinson et al., 1993). We derived the...
Authors
Steven W. Hostetler, R Reker, Jay R. Alder, Thomas Loveland, Debra A. Willard, Christopher E. Bernhardt, Eric T. Sundquist, Renee L. Thompson
Modeled historical land use and land cover for the conterminous United States
The landscape of the conterminous United States has changed dramatically over the last 200 years, with agricultural land use, urban expansion, forestry, and other anthropogenic activities altering land cover across vast swaths of the country. While land use and land cover (LULC) models have been developed to model potential future LULC change, few efforts have focused on recreating...
Authors
Terry L. Sohl, Ryan R. Reker, Michelle A. Bouchard, Kristi Sayler, Jordan Dornbierer, Steve Wika, Robert Quenzer, Aaron M. Friesz
Modelling regional land change scenarios to assess land abandonment and reforestation dynamics in the Pyrenees (France)
Over the last decades and centuries, European mountain landscapes have experienced substantial transformations. Natural and anthropogenic LULC changes (land use and land cover changes), especially agro-pastoral activities, have directly influenced the spatial organization and composition of European mountain landscapes. For the past sixty years, natural reforestation has been occurring...
Authors
Laure Vacquie, Thomas Houet, Terry L. Sohl, Ryan R. Reker, Kristi Sayler
Using Landsat imagery to detect, monitor, and project net landscape change
Detailed landscape information is a necessary component to bird habitat conservation planning. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center has been providing information on the Earth’s surface for over 40 years via the continuous series of Landsat satellites. In addition to operating, processing, and disseminating satellite images, EROS is the...
Authors
Ryan R. Reker, Terry L. Sohl, Alisa L. Gallant
Spatially explicit modeling of 1992-2100 land cover and forest stand age for the conterminous United States
Information on future land-use and land-cover (LULC) change is needed to analyze the impact of LULC change on ecological processes. The U.S. Geological Survey has produced spatially explicit, thematically detailed LULC projections for the conterminous United States. Four qualitative and quantitative scenarios of LULC change were developed, with characteristics consistent with the...
Authors
Terry L. Sohl, Kristi Sayler, Michelle Bouchard, Ryan R. Reker, Aaron M. Friesz, Stacie L. Bennett, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Rachel R. Sleeter, Tamara Wilson, Christopher E. Soulard, Michelle Knuppe, Travis Van Hofwegen
Land-use and land-cover change in three corn belt ecoregions: Similarities and differences
Land use categorical changes, though not as numerous as one might suspect, vary by type within the three designated ecozones of the Corn Belt with the westernmost zone showing the most temporary change vis-a-vis the more permanent changes taking place in the eastern and central zones.
Authors
Roger F. Auch, Chris R. Laingen, Mark A. Drummond, Kristi Sayler, Ryan R. Reker, Michelle A. Bouchard, Jeffrey J. Danielson
Scenarios of land use and land cover change in the conterminous United States: Utilizing the special report on emission scenarios at ecoregional scales
Global environmental change scenarios have typically provided projections of land use and land cover for a relatively small number of regions or using a relatively coarse resolution spatial grid, and for only a few major sectors. The coarseness of global projections, in both spatial and thematic dimensions, often limits their direct utility at scales useful for environmental management...
Authors
Benjamin M. Sleeter, Terry L. Sohl, Michelle A. Bouchard, Ryan R. Reker, Christopher E. Soulard, William Acevedo, Glenn E. Griffith, Rachel R. Sleeter, Roger F. Auch, Kristi Sayler, Stephen Prisley, Zhi-Liang Zhu
Spatially explicit land-use and land-cover scenarios for the Great Plains of the United States
The Great Plains of the United States has undergone extensive land-use and land-cover change in the past 150 years, with much of the once vast native grasslands and wetlands converted to agricultural crops, and much of the unbroken prairie now heavily grazed. Future land-use change in the region could have dramatic impacts on ecological resources and processes. A scenario-based modeling...
Authors
Terry L. Sohl, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Kristi Sayler, Michelle A. Bouchard, Ryan R. Reker, Stacie L. Bennett, Rachel R. Sleeter, Ronald L. Kanengieter, Zhi-Liang Zhu
A land-use and land-cover modeling strategy to support a national assessment of carbon stocks and fluxes
Changes in land use, land cover, disturbance regimes, and land management have considerable influence on carbon and greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes within ecosystems. Through targeted land-use and land-management activities, ecosystems can be managed to enhance carbon sequestration and mitigate fluxes of other GHGs. National-scale, comprehensive analyses of carbon sequestration potential by...
Authors
Terry L. Sohl, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Zhi-Liang Zhu, Kristi Sayler, Stacie Bennett, Michelle Bouchard, Ryan R. Reker, Todd Hawbaker, Anne Wein, Shu-Guang Liu, Ronald Kanengieter, William Acevedo
Non-USGS Publications**
**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.
Conterminous United States Land Cover Projections - 1992 to 2100
The USGS's FORE-SCE model was used to produce land-use and land-cover (LULC) projections for the conterminous United States. The projections were originally created as part of the "LandCarbon" project, an effort to understand biological carbon sequestration potential in the United States. However, the projections are being used for a wide variety of purposes, including analyses of the...
*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