Observing a Changing Earth - Monitoring, Assessment, and Projection (Invited Presentation)

The mission of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center is to “contribute to the understanding of a changing Earth.” To meet this mission objective, we must have a continuous capability to monitor the Earth system in such a way that we can understand the changes in the Earth's condition as caused by both natural and human interactions. Simply, we cannot monitor what we don't observe. While frequent imaging can provide a visual snapshot of the Earth, to effectively monitor change, we must have well-calibrated imaging capabilities spanning decades to give us the ability to continuously monitor Earth's vital signs. Such a challenge cannot be accomplished by simple imaging technologies, i.e. pictures. Sophisticated global multispectral imaging sensors that cover a broad portion of the electromagnetic spectrum and have a global acquisition strategy are a key component to a sustainable land imaging program.

In fiscal year 2015, both NASA and the USGS initiated development of Landsat 9, as part a Sustained Land Imaging (SLI) Program, as proposed by the Administration, which could extend and build on the Landsat record for at least another 20 years. After 43 years of continuous imaging, Landsat may finally be in a place to ensure definitive measurements of the condition of the Earth for future generations. These continuous measurements will be the foundation for improving the understanding of the rates, causes, and consequences of land use and land cover change at local, national, and global scale.

This level of understanding of the changing Earth presents an overarching, long-term scientific and technical challenge that requires a structured, operational, ongoing, and timely collection and delivery of accurate and relevant data, information, and knowledge on land use, land cover, and condition. To meet these challenges, a number of science research to operations endeavors, initiated by the USGS, are underway that will generate and use land change data and information products to explain how the patterns, processes, and consequences of change at multiple spatial and temporal scales affect people and nature. One endeavor is the development of a capability to continuously track and characterize land changes and translates this information into assessments of current and historical processes of change to support evaluations and decisions relevant to environmental management and policy.