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Publications

Below is a list of the most recent EROS peer-reviewed scientific papers, reports, fact sheets, and other publications. You can search all our publication holdings by type, topic, year, and order.

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Filter Total Items: 2456

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 home to na
Authors
Ryan R. Reker, Terry L. Sohl, Alisa L. Gallant

Spatially explicit estimation of aboveground boreal forest biomass in the Yukon River Basin, Alaska

Quantification of aboveground biomass (AGB) in Alaska’s boreal forest is essential to the accurate evaluation of terrestrial carbon stocks and dynamics in northern high-latitude ecosystems. Our goal was to map AGB at 30 m resolution for the boreal forest in the Yukon River Basin of Alaska using Landsat data and ground measurements. We acquired Landsat images to generate a 3-year (2008–2010) compos
Authors
Lei Ji, Bruce K. Wylie, Dana R. N. Brown, Birgit E. Peterson, Heather D. Alexander, Michelle C. Mack, Jennifer R. Rover, Mark P. Waldrop, Jack W. McFarland, Xuexia Chen, Neal J. Pastick

Landsat surface reflectance data

Landsat satellite data have been produced, archived, and distributed by the U.S. Geological Survey since 1972. Users rely on these data for historical study of land surface change and require consistent radiometric data processed to the highest science standards. In support of the guidelines established through the Global Climate Observing System, the U.S. Geological Survey has embarked on product
Authors

Ten ways remote sensing can contribute to conservation

In an effort to increase conservation effectiveness through the use of Earth observation technologies, a group of remote sensing scientists affiliated with government and academic institutions and conservation organizations identified 10 questions in conservation for which the potential to be answered would be greatly increased by use of remotely sensed data and analyses of those data. Our goals w
Authors
Robert A. Rose, Dirck Byler, J. Ron Eastman, Erica Fleishman, Gary Geller, Scott Goetz, Liane Guild, Healy Hamilton, Matt Hansen, Rachel Headley, Jennifer Hewson, Ned Horning, Beth A. Kaplin, Nadine Laporte, Allison K. Leidner, Peter Leimgruber, Jeffrey T. Morisette, John Musinsky, Lilian Pintea, Ana Prados, Volker C. Radeloff, Mary Rowen, Sassan Saatchi, Steve Schill, Karyn Tabor, Woody Turner, Anthony Vodacek, James Vogelmann, Martin Wegmann, David Wilkie, Cara Wilson

Forecasting sagebrush ecosystem components and greater sage-grouse habitat for 2050: learning from past climate patterns and Landsat imagery to predict the future

Sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystems constitute the largest single North American shrub ecosystem and provide vital ecological, hydrological, biological, agricultural, and recreational ecosystem services. Disturbances have altered and reduced this ecosystem historically, but climate change may ultimately represent the greatest future risk. Improved ways to quantify, monitor, and predict climate-d
Authors
Collin G. Homer, George Z. Xian, Cameron L. Aldridge, Debra K. Meyer, Thomas R. Loveland, Michael S. O'Donnell

Soil nutrient budgets following projected corn stover harvest for biofuel production in the conterminous United States

Increasing demand for food and biofuel feedstocks may substantially affect soil nutrient budgets, especially in the United States where there is great potential for corn (Zea mays L) stover as a biofuel feedstock. This study was designed to evaluate impacts of projected stover harvest scenarios on budgets of soil nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) currently and in the future across th
Authors
Zhengxi Tan, Shuguang Liu

Downscaling 250-m MODIS growing season NDVI based on multiple-date landsat images and data mining approaches

The satellite-derived growing season time-integrated Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (GSN) has been used as a proxy for vegetation biomass productivity. The 250-m GSN data estimated from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensors have been used for terrestrial ecosystem modeling and monitoring. High temporal resolution with a wide range of wavelengths make the MODIS l
Authors
Yingxin Gu, Bruce K. Wylie

Integrated climate and land use change scenarios for California rangeland ecosystem services: wildlife habitat, soil carbon, and water supply

Context In addition to biodiversity conservation, California rangelands generate multiple ecosystem services including livestock production, drinking and irrigation water, and carbon sequestration. California rangeland ecosystems have experienced substantial conversion to residential land use and more intensive agriculture. Objectives To understand the potential impacts to rangeland ecosystem serv
Authors
Kristin B. Byrd, Lorraine E. Flint, Pelayo Alvarez, Frank Casey, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Christopher E. Soulard, Alan L. Flint, Terry L. Sohl

Quantitative attribution of major driving forces on soil organic carbon dynamics

Soil organic carbon (SOC) storage plays a major role in the global carbon cycle and is affected by many factors including land use/management changes (e.g., biofuel production-oriented changes). However, the contributions of various factors to SOC changes are not well understood and quantified. This study was designed to investigate the impacts of changing farming practices, initial SOC levels, an
Authors
Yiping Wu, Shuguang Liu, Zhengxi Tan

Characterizing Congo Basin rainfall and climate using Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite data and limited rain gauge ground observations

Quantitative understanding of Congo River basin hydrological behavior is poor because of the basin’s limited hydrometeorological observation network. In cases such as the Congo basin where ground data are scarce, satellite-based estimates of rainfall, such as those from the joint NASA/JAXA Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), can be used to quantify rainfall patterns. This study tests and r
Authors
Yolande A. Munzimi, Matthew C. Hansen, Bernard Adusei, Gabriel B. Senay

Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) radiometric performance on-orbit

Expectations of the Operational Land Imager (OLI) radiometric performance onboard Landsat-8 have been met or exceeded. The calibration activities that occurred prior to launch provided calibration parameters that enabled ground processing to produce imagery that met most requirements when data were transmitted to the ground. Since launch, calibration updates have improved the image quality even mo
Authors
Ron Morfitt, Julia A. Barsi, Raviv Levy, Brian L. Markham, Esad Micijevic, Lawrence Ong, Pat Scaramuzza, Kelly Vanderwerff

Evaluating coastal landscape response to sea-level rise in the northeastern United States: approach and methods

The U.S. Geological Survey is examining effects of future sea-level rise on the coastal landscape from Maine to Virginia by producing spatially explicit, probabilistic predictions using sea-level projections, vertical land movement rates (due to isostacy), elevation data, and land-cover data. Sea-level-rise scenarios used as model inputs are generated by using multiple sources of information, incl
Authors
Erika E. Lentz, Sawyer R. Stippa, E. Robert Thieler, Nathaniel G. Plant, Dean B. Gesch, Radley M. Horton