USGS Submissions

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory continues to rely heavily on satellite and airborne remote sensing data for monitoring and research of Kilauea Volcano’s ongoing summit and East Rift Zone eruptions. 

Bogoslof is the emergent summit of a large submarine stratovolcano that rises ~1,800 m above the Bering Sea floor, but is only ~90 m above sea level (a.s.l.) at its highest point. Bogoslof volcano is located slightly north of the main Aleutian volcanic front, about 100 km west of Dutch Harbor, Alaska. Bogoslof began its most recent eruption on December 20, 2016.  The volcano has produced several explosions with volcanic clouds reaching as high as 11 km (36,000 ft) a.s.l.

Bogoslof Island sits north of the Aleutian volcanic arc, a speck of rock about 60 miles from Unalaska/Dutch Harbor, and is home to a rich variety of marine wildlife. The island is the tip of a mostly submerged back-arc volcano that until recently last erupted in 1992, one of at least eight historical eruptions documented at Bogoslof volcano.

Northern tamarisk beetles (Diorhabda carinulata) were released in the Upper Colorado River Basin in 2004–2007 to defoliate introduced tamarisk shrubs (Tamarix spp.) in the region’s riparian zones. The primary purpose was to control the invasive shrub and reduce evapotranspiration (ET) by tamarisk in an attempt to increase stream flows. USGS scientists evaluated beetle-tamarisk interactions with MODIS and Landsat imagery on 13 river systems, with vegetation indices used as indicators of the extent of defoliation and ET.

The USGS is leading a 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) effort to coordinate with other Federal agency partners and the State of Alaska to acquire new Alaska elevation data statewide using remote sensing techniques. Under its Geospatial Products and Services Contract (GPSC), the USGS is contracting with vendors to acquire 5-m resolution elevation data using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) sensors flown on aircraft.

Devils Tower, a prominent monolith of igneous rock, rises 867 ft above the surrounding landscape. The tower is the monument’s primary resource, as identified in its enabling legislation, yet its vertical aspects and summit can only be seen by those with technical rock climbing experience. High-resolution imaging allows the park staff to discern fine details of the tower surface, including erosional cracks, and provide a snapshot-in-time document of rock quality conditions. This dataset is used as a baseline to evaluate potential rock fall areas of concern.

High-resolution hydrographic mapping, which provides essential data for flood mitigation and planning,  is being completed on thirteen, 12-digit hydrologic units near Sioux Falls, SD. A lidar-derived digital elevation model is being processed using selective drainage methods to hydro-enforce culvert locations into the modeled drainage network.  Many additional culverts were identified and inventoried as a part of this study and using selective drainage processing.

The USGS National Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Project office is assessing natural and man-made features detected by low altitude light detection and ranging (lidar) scanners with photogrammetric surveying techniques via UAS platforms.  The resulting point cloud models are sets of data points in a 3D coordinate system, representing a topographic surface.  By collecting overlapping photographs, the constructed point cloud models provide reliable spatial information.  Lidar surveying technology measures distance to a target with a pulsed laser, providing another technique to

Social scientists at the USGS Social and Economic Analysis (SEA) Branch of the Fort Collins Science Center in Colorado are leading a long-term study to help assess the uses and value of Landsat imagery.  A series of surveys provides longitudinal data on how the users and uses of the imagery are changing over time in response to changes in the provision of the imagery.  This analysis allows economists to explore the value and benefits of the imagery to a community of users.  Multiple case studies focusing on the use and benefits of Landsat imagery in

The National Map Corps (TNMCorps) is a crowdsourced mapping project that relies on volunteers to assist the USGS National Geospatial Program by collecting and editing man-made structures data for The National Map. Through their participation, volunteers make significant contributions to the USGS’s ability to provide the Nation with accurate mapping information.