Neal J Pastick, PhD
Neal Pastick is a Research Physical Scientist with the Earth Resources and Observation Science (EROS) Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Dr. Pastick has conducted data science research for environmental applications over the past 15 years, in close collaboration with a diverse set of geoscientists from industry, federal, and academic institutions. His work primarily focuses on characterizing Earth systems by integrating field observations, remote sensing technologies, and Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML). In his current role at USGS, his key responsibilities include:
- Lead and develop initiatives in AI/ML for environmental science applications
- Design and implement geospatial foundation models and deep learning frameworks for multi-modal Earth observation analysis
- Develop innovative approaches for monitoring and forecasting environmental changes across sensitive ecosystems, including Arctic, Boreal regions, and Drylands
- Build strategic partnerships across USGS, academia, industry, and government agencies to advance Earth science innovation
- Direct research projects investigating anthropogenic change and natural disturbances on ecosystems
Dr. Pastick has authored over 30 refereed publications and contributed to approximately 50 presentations given at scientific meetings. His research has been covered by numerous news agencies (e.g., the Guardian, the Washington Post) and popular magazines (e.g., Scientific American).
Professional Experience
Research Physical Scientist | United States Geological Survey | Sept 2021 – present
Data Scientist | KBR Inc. | Sept 2011 – 2021
Graduate Research Assistant | University of Minnesota | Sept 2014 – June 2015
Physical Science Technician | U.S. Geological Survey – Earth Res. Obs. Sci. Center | June 2010 – Sept 2011
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Natural Resources Science & Management (Assessment, Monitoring, and Geospatial Analysis track), University of Minnesota – Twin Cities (2018)
B.S., Geography and Business Management, Minnesota State University – Mankato (2011)
Honors and Awards
2024 | USGS STAR Award (Member of the AI Strategy Team)
2022 | USGS STAR Award
2017 | U.S. DOI Award for Excellence of Service (Member of the LandCarbon Team)
2017 | Recipient of the Marvin E. Bauer Fellowship in Remote Sensing of Natural Resources
2017 | Recipient of the University of Minnesota’s Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship
2012 | SGT STAR Award for Excellence in Science
2011 | Summa Cum Laude and Beta Gamma Sigma
2010 | Recipient of the HickoryTech Scholarship
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 21
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2025
These datasets provide early estimates of 2025 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from mid April to late June. Typically, the EAG estimates are publicly released within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains five fractional cover maps along with their...
Weekly Changes of Exotic Annual Grasses (EAG) abundance in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2024
These datasets provide weekly differences of early estimates of 2024 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) that were released from April to late June. The EAG estimates were publicly released within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contained five fractional cover maps along with their corresponding confidence maps for: 1) a...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2024
These datasets provide early estimates of 2024 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from April to late June. Typically, the EAG estimates are publicly released within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains five fractional cover maps along with their...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2023
These datasets provide early estimates of 2023 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from May to early July. The EAG estimates are developed typically within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains four fractional cover maps along with their corresponding...
Alaska permafrost characterization: Geophysical and related field data collected in 2021
Geophysical measurements were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) at five sites in Interior Alaska in September 2021 for the purposes of imaging permafrost structure and quantifying variations in subsurface moisture content in relation to thaw features. Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) measurements were made along transects 110-222 meters (m) in length to quantify...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2022 (ver 6.0, July 2022)
These datasets provide early estimates of 2022 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a bi-weekly basis from May to early July. The EAG estimates are developed within one week of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each bi-weekly release contains four fractional cover maps along with their corresponding...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, July 2021, (ver 2.0, January 2022)
These datasets provide early estimates of 2021 exotic annual grasses (EAG) fractional cover predicted on July 1 using satellite observation data available until June 28th. In previous releases, we developed and released one general EAG fractional cover map with an emphasis on cheatgrass (Bromus tectrorum) but also included number of other species, i.e., Bromus arvensis L., Bromus...
Fractional Estimates of Multiple Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) Species in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2016 - 2023 (ver. 4.0, July 2024)
This dataset release provides historical (2016 - 2023) estimates of fractional cover for Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) species and a native perennial bunch grass in the arid and semi-arid rangelands of the western United States. The dataset includes four (five for 2023) fractional cover maps per year, accompanied by corresponding confidence maps, for a group of 16 species of EAGs, Cheatgrass...
Permafrost characterization at the Alaska Peatland Experiment (APEX) site: Geophysical and related field data collected from 2018-2020
Geophysical measurements and related field data were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) at the Alaska Peatland Experiment (APEX) site in Interior Alaska from 2018 to 2020 to characterize subsurface thermal and hydrologic conditions along a permafrost thaw gradient. The APEX site is managed by the Bonanza Creek LTER (Long Term Ecological Research). In April 2018, seven...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, May 2021, v1
This dataset provides early estimates of 2021 exotic annual grasses (EAG) fractional cover predicted on May 3rd. We develop and release EAG fractional cover map with an emphasis on cheatgrass (Bromus tectrorum) but it also includes number of other species, i.e., Bromus arvensis L., Bromus briziformis, Bromus catharticus Vahl, Bromus commutatus, Bromus diandrus, Bromus hordeaceus L...
Weekly cloud free Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2 (HLS) Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data for western United States (2016 – 2019).
In support of mapping ecological conditions (e.g. invasive annual grass) in sagebrush-dominated landscapes of the western United States, we developed weekly (starting from week 7 to week 42 and Week 1 starts January 1 or Day of the year 1 to 7, week 2 is from Day of year 8 to 14, and so on) 30-m cloud-free Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) from 2016 to 2019. The data was...
Fire impacts on permafrost in Alaska: Geophysical and other field data collected in 2015
Fire can be a significant driver of permafrost change in boreal landscapes, altering the availability of soil carbon and nutrients that have important implications for future climate and ecological succession. However, not all landscapes are equally susceptible to fire-induced change. As fire frequency is expected to increase in the high latitudes, methods to understand the vulnerability...
Eyes on Earth Episode 105 – Imagery Challenges of Alaska
In this episode of Eyes on Earth, we focus on Alaska. Rich in wildlife and natural resources, not to mention its sheer size, Alaska has long been a source of fascination for remote sensing scientists. But it is also a source of frustration, with frequent cloud and snow cover and months of darkness each year. Three EROS researchers well versed in interpreting Landsat imagery from Alaska shared...
Filter Total Items: 26
Upland Yedoma taliks are an unpredicted source of atmospheric methane
Landscape drying associated with permafrost thaw is expected to enhance microbial methane oxidation in arctic soils. Here we show that ice-rich, Yedoma permafrost deposits, comprising a disproportionately large fraction of pan-arctic soil carbon, present an alternate trajectory. Field and laboratory observations indicate that talik (perennially thawed soils in permafrost) development in...
Authors
K.M. Walter Anthony, Nicholas Hasson, Colin W. Edgar, Orit Sivan, Effrat Eliani-Russak, Oded Bergman, Burke J. Minsley, Stephanie R. James, Neal J. Pastick, Alexander Kholodov, Sergey Zimov, Eugenie S. Euskirchen, Marion S. Bret-Harte, Guido Grosse, Moritz Langer, Jan Nitzbon
Investigating permafrost carbon dynamics in Alaska with artificial intelligence
Positive feedbacks between permafrost degradation and the release of soil carbon into the atmosphere impact land–atmosphere interactions, disrupt the global carbon cycle, and accelerate climate change. The widespread distribution of thawing permafrost is causing a cascade of geophysical and biochemical disturbances with global impacts. Currently, few earth system models account for...
Authors
Bradley Gay, Neal Pastick, Andreas Zufle, Amanda Armstrong, Kimberly Miner, J.J. Qu
Rapid and gradual permafrost thaw: A tale of two sites
Warming temperatures and increasing disturbance by wildfire and extreme weather events is driving permafrost change across northern latitudes. The state of permafrost varies widely in space and time, depending on landscape, climate, hydrologic, and ecological factors. Despite its importance, few approaches commonly measure and monitor the changes in deep (>1 m) permafrost conditions with...
Authors
Burke J. Minsley, Neal Pastick, Stephanie R. James, Dana Brown, Bruce Wylie, Mason A. Kass, Vladimir E. Romanovsky
Heterogeneous patterns of aged organic carbon export driven by hydrologic flow paths, soil texture, fire, and thaw in discontinuous permafrost headwaters
Climate change is thawing and potentially mobilizing vast quantities of organic carbon (OC) previously stored for millennia in permafrost soils of northern circumpolar landscapes. Climate-driven increases in fire and thermokarst may play a key role in OC mobilization by thawing permafrost and promoting transport of OC. Yet, the extent of OC mobilization and mechanisms controlling...
Authors
Joshua C. Koch, Matthew J. Bogard, David Butman, Kerri Finlay, Brian Ebel, Jason James, Sarah Ellen Johnston, Torre Jorgenson, Neal Pastick, Rob Spencer, Robert G. Striegl, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Kimberly Wickland
Multi-species inference of exotic annual and native perennial grasses in rangelands of the western United States using Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 data
The invasion of exotic annual grass (EAG), e.g., cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae), into rangeland ecosystems of the western United States is a broad-scale problem that affects wildlife habitats, increases wildfire frequency, and adds to land management costs. However, identifying individual species of EAG abundance from remote sensing, particularly...
Authors
Devendra Dahal, Neal J. Pastick, Stephen P. Boyte, Sujan Parajuli, Michael J. Oimoen, Logan J. Megard
Characterizing methane emission hotspots from thawing permafrost
Methane (CH4) emissions from climate-sensitive ecosystems within the northern permafrost region represent a potentially large but highly uncertain source, with current estimates spanning a factor of seven (11–75 Tg CH4 yr−1). Accelerating permafrost thaw threatens significant increases in pan-Arctic CH4 emissions, amplifying the permafrost carbon feedback. We used airborne imaging...
Authors
Clayton D. Elder, David M. Thompson, Andrew K Thorpe, Hrishikesh Chandanpurkar, Philip J Hanke, Nicholas Hasson, Stephanie R. James, Burke J. Minsley, Neal J. Pastick, David Olefeldt, K.M. Walter Anthony, Charles E. Miller
The climate envelope of Alaska’s northern treelines: Implications for controlling factors and future treeline advance
Understanding the key mechanisms that control northern treelines is important to accurately predict biome shifts and terrestrial feedbacks to climate. At a global scale, it has long been observed that elevational and latitudinal treelines occur at similar mean growing season air temperature (GSAT) isotherms, inspiring the growth limitation hypothesis (GLH) that cold GSAT limits...
Authors
Colin T. Maher, Roman J. Dial, Neal J Pastick, Rebecca E. Hewitt, Mark Torre Jorgenson, Patrick J. Sullivan
Rapid monitoring of the abundance and spread of exotic annual grasses in the western United States using remote sensing and machine learning
Exotic annual grasses (EAG) are one of the most damaging agents of change in western North America. Despite known socio-environmental effects of EAG there remains a need to enhance monitoring capabilities for better informing conservation and management practices. Here, we integrate field observations, remote sensing and climate data with machine-learning techniques to estimate and...
Authors
Neal Pastick, Bruce Wylie, Matthew B. Rigge, Devendra Dahal, Stephen P. Boyte, Matthew Richard Jones, Brady W. Allred, Sujan Parajuli, Zhuoting Wu
Decadal-scale hotspot methane ebullition within lakes following abrupt permafrost thaw
Thermokarst lakes accelerate deep permafrost thaw and the mobilization of previously frozen soil organic carbon. This leads to microbial decomposition and large releases of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) that enhance climate warming. However, the time scale of permafrost-carbon emissions following thaw is not well known but is important for understanding how abrupt permafrost...
Authors
K.M. Walter Anthony, P. Lindgren, Philip J Hanke, Melanie Engram, P. Anthony, R. Daanen, Allen C. Bondurant, Anna K. Liljedahl, J. Lenz, G. Grosse, B.M. Jones, L. S. Brosius, Stephanie R. James, Burke J. Minsley, Neal Pastick, J. Munk, Jeffrey P. Chanton, C.E. Miller, F.J. Meyer
USGS permafrost research determines the risks of permafrost thaw to biologic and hydrologic resources
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in collaboration with university, Federal, Tribal, and independent partners, conducts fundamental research on the distribution, vulnerability, and importance of permafrost in arctic and boreal ecosystems. Scientists, land managers, and policy makers use USGS data to help make decisions for development, wildlife habitat, and other needs. Native villages...
Authors
Mark P. Waldrop, Lesleigh Anderson, Mark M. Dornblaser, Li Erikson, Ann Gibbs, Nicole M. Herman-Mercer, Stephanie R. James, Miriam C. Jones, Joshua C. Koch, Mary-Cathrine Leewis, Kristen L. Manies, Burke J. Minsley, Neal J. Pastick, Vijay P. Patil, Frank Urban, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Kimberly Wickland, Christian E. Zimmerman
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Land Change Science Program, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Land Change Science Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center , Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Volcano Science Center
Characterizing land surface phenology and exotic annual grasses in dryland ecosystems using Landsat and Sentinel-2 data in harmony
Invasive annual grasses, such as cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.), have proliferated in dryland ecosystems of the western United States, promoting increased fire activity and reduced biodiversity that can be detrimental to socio-environmental systems. Monitoring exotic annual grass cover and dynamics over large areas requires the use of remote sensing that can support early detection and...
Authors
Neal Pastick, Devendra Dahal, Bruce Wylie, Sujan Parajuli, Stephen P. Boyte, Zhuoting Wu
Geospatial data mining for digital raster mapping
We performed an in-depth literature survey to identify the most popular data mining approaches that have been applied for raster mapping of ecological parameters through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remotely sensed data. Popular data mining approaches included decision trees or “data mining” trees which consist of regression and classification trees, random forests...
Authors
Bruce Wylie, Neal J. Pastick, Joshua J. Picotte, Carol Deering
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.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 21
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2025
These datasets provide early estimates of 2025 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from mid April to late June. Typically, the EAG estimates are publicly released within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains five fractional cover maps along with their...
Weekly Changes of Exotic Annual Grasses (EAG) abundance in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2024
These datasets provide weekly differences of early estimates of 2024 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) that were released from April to late June. The EAG estimates were publicly released within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contained five fractional cover maps along with their corresponding confidence maps for: 1) a...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2024
These datasets provide early estimates of 2024 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from April to late June. Typically, the EAG estimates are publicly released within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains five fractional cover maps along with their...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2023
These datasets provide early estimates of 2023 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from May to early July. The EAG estimates are developed typically within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains four fractional cover maps along with their corresponding...
Alaska permafrost characterization: Geophysical and related field data collected in 2021
Geophysical measurements were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) at five sites in Interior Alaska in September 2021 for the purposes of imaging permafrost structure and quantifying variations in subsurface moisture content in relation to thaw features. Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) measurements were made along transects 110-222 meters (m) in length to quantify...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2022 (ver 6.0, July 2022)
These datasets provide early estimates of 2022 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a bi-weekly basis from May to early July. The EAG estimates are developed within one week of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each bi-weekly release contains four fractional cover maps along with their corresponding...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, July 2021, (ver 2.0, January 2022)
These datasets provide early estimates of 2021 exotic annual grasses (EAG) fractional cover predicted on July 1 using satellite observation data available until June 28th. In previous releases, we developed and released one general EAG fractional cover map with an emphasis on cheatgrass (Bromus tectrorum) but also included number of other species, i.e., Bromus arvensis L., Bromus...
Fractional Estimates of Multiple Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) Species in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2016 - 2023 (ver. 4.0, July 2024)
This dataset release provides historical (2016 - 2023) estimates of fractional cover for Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) species and a native perennial bunch grass in the arid and semi-arid rangelands of the western United States. The dataset includes four (five for 2023) fractional cover maps per year, accompanied by corresponding confidence maps, for a group of 16 species of EAGs, Cheatgrass...
Permafrost characterization at the Alaska Peatland Experiment (APEX) site: Geophysical and related field data collected from 2018-2020
Geophysical measurements and related field data were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) at the Alaska Peatland Experiment (APEX) site in Interior Alaska from 2018 to 2020 to characterize subsurface thermal and hydrologic conditions along a permafrost thaw gradient. The APEX site is managed by the Bonanza Creek LTER (Long Term Ecological Research). In April 2018, seven...
Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, May 2021, v1
This dataset provides early estimates of 2021 exotic annual grasses (EAG) fractional cover predicted on May 3rd. We develop and release EAG fractional cover map with an emphasis on cheatgrass (Bromus tectrorum) but it also includes number of other species, i.e., Bromus arvensis L., Bromus briziformis, Bromus catharticus Vahl, Bromus commutatus, Bromus diandrus, Bromus hordeaceus L...
Weekly cloud free Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2 (HLS) Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data for western United States (2016 – 2019).
In support of mapping ecological conditions (e.g. invasive annual grass) in sagebrush-dominated landscapes of the western United States, we developed weekly (starting from week 7 to week 42 and Week 1 starts January 1 or Day of the year 1 to 7, week 2 is from Day of year 8 to 14, and so on) 30-m cloud-free Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) from 2016 to 2019. The data was...
Fire impacts on permafrost in Alaska: Geophysical and other field data collected in 2015
Fire can be a significant driver of permafrost change in boreal landscapes, altering the availability of soil carbon and nutrients that have important implications for future climate and ecological succession. However, not all landscapes are equally susceptible to fire-induced change. As fire frequency is expected to increase in the high latitudes, methods to understand the vulnerability...
Eyes on Earth Episode 105 – Imagery Challenges of Alaska
In this episode of Eyes on Earth, we focus on Alaska. Rich in wildlife and natural resources, not to mention its sheer size, Alaska has long been a source of fascination for remote sensing scientists. But it is also a source of frustration, with frequent cloud and snow cover and months of darkness each year. Three EROS researchers well versed in interpreting Landsat imagery from Alaska shared...
Filter Total Items: 26
Upland Yedoma taliks are an unpredicted source of atmospheric methane
Landscape drying associated with permafrost thaw is expected to enhance microbial methane oxidation in arctic soils. Here we show that ice-rich, Yedoma permafrost deposits, comprising a disproportionately large fraction of pan-arctic soil carbon, present an alternate trajectory. Field and laboratory observations indicate that talik (perennially thawed soils in permafrost) development in...
Authors
K.M. Walter Anthony, Nicholas Hasson, Colin W. Edgar, Orit Sivan, Effrat Eliani-Russak, Oded Bergman, Burke J. Minsley, Stephanie R. James, Neal J. Pastick, Alexander Kholodov, Sergey Zimov, Eugenie S. Euskirchen, Marion S. Bret-Harte, Guido Grosse, Moritz Langer, Jan Nitzbon
Investigating permafrost carbon dynamics in Alaska with artificial intelligence
Positive feedbacks between permafrost degradation and the release of soil carbon into the atmosphere impact land–atmosphere interactions, disrupt the global carbon cycle, and accelerate climate change. The widespread distribution of thawing permafrost is causing a cascade of geophysical and biochemical disturbances with global impacts. Currently, few earth system models account for...
Authors
Bradley Gay, Neal Pastick, Andreas Zufle, Amanda Armstrong, Kimberly Miner, J.J. Qu
Rapid and gradual permafrost thaw: A tale of two sites
Warming temperatures and increasing disturbance by wildfire and extreme weather events is driving permafrost change across northern latitudes. The state of permafrost varies widely in space and time, depending on landscape, climate, hydrologic, and ecological factors. Despite its importance, few approaches commonly measure and monitor the changes in deep (>1 m) permafrost conditions with...
Authors
Burke J. Minsley, Neal Pastick, Stephanie R. James, Dana Brown, Bruce Wylie, Mason A. Kass, Vladimir E. Romanovsky
Heterogeneous patterns of aged organic carbon export driven by hydrologic flow paths, soil texture, fire, and thaw in discontinuous permafrost headwaters
Climate change is thawing and potentially mobilizing vast quantities of organic carbon (OC) previously stored for millennia in permafrost soils of northern circumpolar landscapes. Climate-driven increases in fire and thermokarst may play a key role in OC mobilization by thawing permafrost and promoting transport of OC. Yet, the extent of OC mobilization and mechanisms controlling...
Authors
Joshua C. Koch, Matthew J. Bogard, David Butman, Kerri Finlay, Brian Ebel, Jason James, Sarah Ellen Johnston, Torre Jorgenson, Neal Pastick, Rob Spencer, Robert G. Striegl, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Kimberly Wickland
Multi-species inference of exotic annual and native perennial grasses in rangelands of the western United States using Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 data
The invasion of exotic annual grass (EAG), e.g., cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae), into rangeland ecosystems of the western United States is a broad-scale problem that affects wildlife habitats, increases wildfire frequency, and adds to land management costs. However, identifying individual species of EAG abundance from remote sensing, particularly...
Authors
Devendra Dahal, Neal J. Pastick, Stephen P. Boyte, Sujan Parajuli, Michael J. Oimoen, Logan J. Megard
Characterizing methane emission hotspots from thawing permafrost
Methane (CH4) emissions from climate-sensitive ecosystems within the northern permafrost region represent a potentially large but highly uncertain source, with current estimates spanning a factor of seven (11–75 Tg CH4 yr−1). Accelerating permafrost thaw threatens significant increases in pan-Arctic CH4 emissions, amplifying the permafrost carbon feedback. We used airborne imaging...
Authors
Clayton D. Elder, David M. Thompson, Andrew K Thorpe, Hrishikesh Chandanpurkar, Philip J Hanke, Nicholas Hasson, Stephanie R. James, Burke J. Minsley, Neal J. Pastick, David Olefeldt, K.M. Walter Anthony, Charles E. Miller
The climate envelope of Alaska’s northern treelines: Implications for controlling factors and future treeline advance
Understanding the key mechanisms that control northern treelines is important to accurately predict biome shifts and terrestrial feedbacks to climate. At a global scale, it has long been observed that elevational and latitudinal treelines occur at similar mean growing season air temperature (GSAT) isotherms, inspiring the growth limitation hypothesis (GLH) that cold GSAT limits...
Authors
Colin T. Maher, Roman J. Dial, Neal J Pastick, Rebecca E. Hewitt, Mark Torre Jorgenson, Patrick J. Sullivan
Rapid monitoring of the abundance and spread of exotic annual grasses in the western United States using remote sensing and machine learning
Exotic annual grasses (EAG) are one of the most damaging agents of change in western North America. Despite known socio-environmental effects of EAG there remains a need to enhance monitoring capabilities for better informing conservation and management practices. Here, we integrate field observations, remote sensing and climate data with machine-learning techniques to estimate and...
Authors
Neal Pastick, Bruce Wylie, Matthew B. Rigge, Devendra Dahal, Stephen P. Boyte, Matthew Richard Jones, Brady W. Allred, Sujan Parajuli, Zhuoting Wu
Decadal-scale hotspot methane ebullition within lakes following abrupt permafrost thaw
Thermokarst lakes accelerate deep permafrost thaw and the mobilization of previously frozen soil organic carbon. This leads to microbial decomposition and large releases of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) that enhance climate warming. However, the time scale of permafrost-carbon emissions following thaw is not well known but is important for understanding how abrupt permafrost...
Authors
K.M. Walter Anthony, P. Lindgren, Philip J Hanke, Melanie Engram, P. Anthony, R. Daanen, Allen C. Bondurant, Anna K. Liljedahl, J. Lenz, G. Grosse, B.M. Jones, L. S. Brosius, Stephanie R. James, Burke J. Minsley, Neal Pastick, J. Munk, Jeffrey P. Chanton, C.E. Miller, F.J. Meyer
USGS permafrost research determines the risks of permafrost thaw to biologic and hydrologic resources
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in collaboration with university, Federal, Tribal, and independent partners, conducts fundamental research on the distribution, vulnerability, and importance of permafrost in arctic and boreal ecosystems. Scientists, land managers, and policy makers use USGS data to help make decisions for development, wildlife habitat, and other needs. Native villages...
Authors
Mark P. Waldrop, Lesleigh Anderson, Mark M. Dornblaser, Li Erikson, Ann Gibbs, Nicole M. Herman-Mercer, Stephanie R. James, Miriam C. Jones, Joshua C. Koch, Mary-Cathrine Leewis, Kristen L. Manies, Burke J. Minsley, Neal J. Pastick, Vijay P. Patil, Frank Urban, Michelle Ann Walvoord, Kimberly Wickland, Christian E. Zimmerman
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, Ecosystems Land Change Science Program, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Land Change Science Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center , Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Volcano Science Center
Characterizing land surface phenology and exotic annual grasses in dryland ecosystems using Landsat and Sentinel-2 data in harmony
Invasive annual grasses, such as cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.), have proliferated in dryland ecosystems of the western United States, promoting increased fire activity and reduced biodiversity that can be detrimental to socio-environmental systems. Monitoring exotic annual grass cover and dynamics over large areas requires the use of remote sensing that can support early detection and...
Authors
Neal Pastick, Devendra Dahal, Bruce Wylie, Sujan Parajuli, Stephen P. Boyte, Zhuoting Wu
Geospatial data mining for digital raster mapping
We performed an in-depth literature survey to identify the most popular data mining approaches that have been applied for raster mapping of ecological parameters through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remotely sensed data. Popular data mining approaches included decision trees or “data mining” trees which consist of regression and classification trees, random forests...
Authors
Bruce Wylie, Neal J. Pastick, Joshua J. Picotte, Carol Deering
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.