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U.S. Department of the Interior
The USGS 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) effort to acquire new statewide Alaska elevation data is complete. The overall goal of 3DEP is to complete acquisition of the first-ever national baseline of consistent high-resolution elevation data—both bare-earth and three-dimensional point clouds—collected in a timeframe of less than a decade.
Caribou (Rangifer tarandus) are an iconic species of the north and an integral component of the natural ecosystem and socioeconomic wellbeing of local communities. Alaska is home to 32 different caribou herds which are identified by females returning to specific calving areas each spring to give birth.
Although the International Union on Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the Egyptian tortoise (Testudo Kleinmanni) as critically endangered, it is the least studied tortoise species in the Mediterranean basin.
The majority of America’s wetlands are located in Alaska (65%), but to date the FWS National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) Program has produced wetland data covering only 42% of the State. Areas without NWI data include over 31 million acres of the FWS National Wildlife Refuge System.
When nightly migration starts or ends, birds transition vertically through the airspace where there is the potential for collision with anthropogenic structures. Factors that increase collision risks include reduced visibility because of bad weather, size or orientation of the object (such as powerlines), time spent in the collision zone, and proximity to large concentrations of birds or important habitat areas.
The USGS is coordinating a 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) effort with other Federal agency partners and the State of Alaska to acquire new statewide Alaska elevation data. Under its Geospatial Products and Services Contract (GPSC), the USGS is contracting with vendors to acquire 5-meter resolution elevation data using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) sensors flown on aircraft.
The goal of the 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) is to complete acquisition of nationwide lidar (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IfSAR) in Alaska) in 8 years to provide the first-ever national baseline of consistent high-resolution elevation data—both bare earth and 3D point clouds—collected in a timeframe of less than a decade.
This project focuses on the illegal artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) of small and low-grade mineral and gemstone deposits. Project scientists employ field mapping, geomorphological techniques, and remote sensing to map, monitor, and evaluate mineral deposits and ASM activities in conflict zones and during complex emergencies.
During 2019, the Avian Radar Project surveyed the migration of birds and bats in the Detroit, Michigan, area using mobile avian radar units.
Tumbesian dry forest in southern Ecuador and northern Peru faces a number of threats from factors such as climate change, wildfire, and intensive livestock grazing that can result in degraded conditions. Large-area monitoring is needed to support national and international watershed projects seeking to preserve the forest and thereby maintain a fresh water supply, plant and animal diversity, and other resource values.
