USGS Accelerates Access to Satellite Data
Released: 7/1/2008
Federal and state agencies that need satellite imagery from commercial sources will find it much easier to acquire the data through a streamlined process managed by the U.S. Geological Survey. Read more...

National Treasure Expands: National Archives to Include Earth Imagery
Released: 06-13-2008
The story of the Nation's land during the last 75 years can be told impartially through records of earth observation - aerial photographs dating from the 1930s and satellite images dating from the 1960s. Preserving important records of the Nation's history while providing convenient public access to them is a vital responsibility of government. To meet this responsibility, NARA and USGS have signed an agreement creating a cooperative framework for how the two Federal agencies will ensure the preservation and access of the massive earth imagery and geospatial data resources currently archived by the USGS at EROS. Read More...

Boldly Going Where No Man (or Woman) Goes: USGS Unmanned Aircraft
Released: 5/8/2008
In dangerous and remote areas, such as polar regions, volcanic islands, and expansive deserts, remote-controlled unmanned aircraft can provide more detailed, more timely data about the status of natural resources and environmental conditions than would be feasible by any other means. Read More...   News Release

USGS Awards Satellite Imagery Contracts: Enhancing Access to Users
Released: 5/2/2008
RESTON, VA -The United States Geological Survey (USGS) announced the award of three multi-year acquisition contracts for high and moderate-resolution satellite imagery to GeoEye of Dulles, VA, DigitalGlobe of Longmont, CO and SPOT Image Corporation of Chantilly, VA. Read More...

Cyclone Nargis
Landsat satellite imagery, acquired shortly before and after Cyclone Nargis hit the coastal region of Myanamr on May 3, 2008, illustrate the flooding and destruction caused by the cyclone. The delta region, which is home to one fourth of Myanmar’s 57 million people, is a major agricultural area and its lowlands make it especially susceptible to flooding. The cyclone created a 3.6 meter storm surge which devastated the area. At least 22,000 deaths have been reported, with 41,000 listed as missing. Over 1 million are homeless. Learn More.

Imagery for Everyone
By February 2009, any Landsat archive scene selected by a user will be processed, at no charge, automatically to a standard product recipe and staged for electronic retrieval. Users will have access to global scenes dating back to Landsat 1. Read More...
Technical Announcement

EXTENDED! to May 15, 2008 - William T. Pecora Award Nominations deadline.
The William T. Pecora Award is presented annually to recognize outstanding contributions by individuals or groups toward understanding the Earth by means of remote sensing. Any individual or group (domestic or international) working in the field of remote sensing of the Earth is eligible to receive the William T. Pecora Award. Read More...

Pecora 17 Call for Abstracts -- DEADLINE April 11, 2008
The Pecora 17 Conference will be held Monday through Thursday, November 17 to 20, 2008 at the Adams Mark Hotel in Denver, Colorado. Full details of this conference and abstract guidelines may be found at http://www.asprs.org/Pecora17.

Landsat 5 Satellite Back in Action: The earth imaging satellite Landsat 5 is once again collecting and downlinking land-image data. The satellite was temporarily taken out of service in October 2007 following a cell failure within one of the satellite's two operating on-board batteries. Read More...

Recent VA-NC Wildfires- On Feb 11, Landsat 7 captured approximately 6,000 acres of burned area south of Richmond and Petersburg, VA. The 2 blue areas represent recently burned acreage. The orange color on the edge of the blue areas indicates active fires at the time the image was captured. For more information on this image see media advisory. For more information on Satellite Applications for Fire Science click here.

LRS Administered AmericaView partners with SPOT to expand access to high-resolution satellite imagery for U. S. colleges and universities through the web via www.americaview.org. "This program will make high quality, high resolution satellite imagery available to colleges and universities, providing a higher level of practical training to the next generation of remote sensing data users," said Bruce Ogden, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for SPOT Image. Read More...

Abstract Deadline 2/15/2008- 4th Annual LRS Science Symposium
The USGS Geography Discipline Land Remote Sensing (LRS) Program is hosting the 4th Annual Land Remote Sensing Science Symposium titled "Meeting Tomorrows Challenges Today" on March 11-12, 2008, in the USGS Flagstaff facility in Arizona. The purpose of the conference is to showcase remote sensing research activities being conducted across the USGS. Read More...

Visit the Latest Archive page for information highlighted here in the past.

Cyclone Nargis — 2008

The White House has initiated a year-long study called The Future of Land Imaging to explore options for United States operational use of satellites to better serve society. The USGS serves on the leadership team of this Federal interagency working group.