Multimedia Gallery

Landsat satellites acquire useful data on wildfires around the world. Their near infrared and shortwave infrared imaging allows for detection and mapping of fire, smoke, and burn scars often in remote areas.

In California: the Dixie Fire near Lake Almanor and the Caldor Fire near Lake Tahoe.

In Israel: over 6,000 acres in the Jerusalem Hills just west of

The remnants of Hurricane Ida dumped several inches of rain on eastern Pennsylvania.

These Landsat images show the Schuylkill River west of Philadelphia where muddied waters rose in several communities.

This image from August 26th shows typical river levels in the Phoenixville area.

A USGS stream gauge in Philadelphia exceeded flood stage levels by

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Water Data for the Nation (WDFN) es el nuevo Sistema Nacional de Información sobre el Agua (NWIS, por sus siglas en inglés). Las páginas de última generación de localizaciones de monitoreo del WDFN son la primera área de modernización del sistema heredado de

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Water Data for the Nation (WDFN) is the new Nation Water Information System (NWIS). WDFN's Next Generation monitoring location pages are the first area of modernization of the legacy NWISWeb system. Watch this video to learn more about WDFN and the transition to the

Yellowstone Volcano Observatory scientist-in-charge Mike Poland tells the story behind the color change of Morning Glory Pool and shows how to recognize seasonal changes in ground deformation data in this September 1, 2021 video update of volcano and earthquake activity at Yellowstone Volcano.

Morning Glory has a cautionary tale to tell about how humans can impact

The Caldor fire in California started on August 14, 2021 and quickly spread in high winds.

The fire continues to expand toward the Lake Tahoe area as residents evacuate.

This image was captured on August 21, the 8th day.

Landsat 8's near infrared and shortwave infrared bands reveal active fire, burn scars, and smoke.

Landsat's thermal and

Social scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Fort Collins Science Center – in collaboration with the USGS National Land Imaging Program – conduct Earth observation user case studies using qualitative research methods. Using standard scientific methods, they are better able to understand the variety of Earth observation users, including how they use and value

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The increasing risk of flooding along our coasts is driven by climate change, development and habitat loss.

Powerful climate-fueled hurricanes such as Irma and Maria in 2017 caused significant damage to coastal communities in Florida and Puerto Rico, not

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The increasing risk of flooding along our coasts is driven by climate change, development and habitat loss.

Powerful climate-fueled hurricanes such as Irma and Maria in 2017 caused significant damage to coastal communities in Florida and Puerto Rico, not

Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) data are here!

The LP DAAC and the HLS Science Team are pleased to announce the release of Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) version 2.0 surface reflectance products. HLS data are composed of observations from Landsat 8 and Sentinel-2 and provide a set of seamless data products that can be utilized as if all observations

Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) data are here!

The LP DAAC and the HLS Science Team are pleased to announce the release of Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) version 2.0 surface reflectance products. HLS data are composed of observations from Landsat 8 and Sentinel-2 and provide a set of seamless data products that can be utilized as if all

The Santa Lucia Mountains of the Big Sur coast, California contain abundant active landslides. To evaluate the hypothesis that rock strength, as influenced by lithology, fracture density, and weathering extent modulate deep-seated (10’s m thick) rockslide susceptibility, we quantified intact-rock strength, fracture characteristics, and rock mass strength along 140-km of

Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) data are here!

The LP DAAC and the HLS Science Team are pleased to announce the release of Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) version 2.0 surface reflectance products. HLS data are composed of observations from Landsat 8 and Sentinel-2 and provide a set of seamless data products that can be utilized as if all observations

Welcome to the "The I Am A..." series. This is the tenth video in a series of USGS whiteboard animations that highlight USGS careers. The concept is to show "what society (or my mom) thinks I do" compared with "what I really do." One image captures a more whimsical representation of a "scientist" and the second demonstrates a more accurate representation of what we really

Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) version 2 data are here!

The LP DAAC and the HLS Science Team are pleased to announce the release of Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) version 2.0 surface reflectance products. HLS data are composed of observations from Landsat 8 and Sentinel-2 and provide a set of seamless data products that can be utilized as if all

The Dixie Fire has become the largest single fire in California's recorded history. State fire officials don't list it at the top, however. The record is held by the massive August Complex fire of 2020 which burned over one million acres. The term "complex" is used when multiple fires in the same area ignite separately. Designating the fires as a complex allows them to be

The record 2018 wet year in Pittsburgh resulted in widespread landslides throughout the region, many of which caused considerable damage to residential property and transportation infrastructure. The wet year began with a series of storms including two relatively rare multiday winter rainstorms that resulted in both shallow and deep subsurface hydrologic conditions that

The Earth As Art project began in the early 2000s, and its original intent remains the same: to produce images that do not look like satellite images at first glance. Earth As Art shows not only what satellites capture in the visible wavelengths of light you and I can see, but also what’s hiding in the invisible wavelengths that Landsat sensors can detect in the infrared

The Earth As Art project began in the early 2000s, and its original intent remains the same: to produce images that do not look like satellite images at first glance. Earth As Art shows not only what satellites capture in the visible wavelengths of light you and I can see, but also what’s hiding in the invisible wavelengths that Landsat sensors can detect in the infrared

A broad overview of landslide geology across Pennsylvania, and historical and current work on landslides by the Pennsylvania Survey and others. The diverse geology and topography of Pennsylvania's woods provides a variety of landslide problems beyond the well-known issues around Pittsburgh.

In this lesson, we will provide an overview and demonstrate how to use The National Map’s web services in a mapping application. Although downloading data from The National Map is a popular option for many users, there are numerous situations where it may be preferable to simply call TNM web services into your mapping application. By using the National Map services, you

Meet GEDI! The Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation sensor aboard the ISS!

The Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) is a full-waveform lidar instrument that produces detailed observations of the 3-dimensional structure of the Earth’s surface. GEDI precisely measures forest canopy height, canopy vertical structure, and surface elevation which enhances

A prolonged dry spell has sparked woes over water availability and wildfire in the western United States.

This stretch of northern California is heavily reliant on man-made reservoirs. The recent history of a single Landsat scene can serve to illustrate the ripple effects of those severely parched conditions. Water levels have dropped in Folsom Lake, Indian Valley