Landsat’s Role in Managing Ecosystems and Biodiversity
Our world is made of complex networks of living things and physical elements that constantly interact and affect each other. Such networks are known as “ecosystems.” Healthy and economically important ecosystems such as temperate forests, wetlands, grasslands, coastal zones, coral reefs, and rainforests all play roles in human life. For example, farm and rangeland ecosystems must be healthy to produce the grains and livestock on which we depend as a nation. Marine ecosystems depend on the health of land ecosystems, because coastal areas provide habitat needed to support the productivity and diversity of aquatic organisms. Landsat has brought valuable capabilities to ecosystem studies. Landsat instruments measure reflected light in visible and infrared wavelengths. Because plants reflect little visible light and a lot of infrared light when they are healthy, the measurement of both types of light simultaneously gives scientists a way to assess plant health and density over a landscape. Measurements are detailed enough while still covering a wide area that ecologists can expand their interpretations of local events and processes, such as an insect infestation in a specific forest, to a regional scale. This helps them to gauge the health of larger ecosystems. Because Landsat data are accurately mapped to reference points on the ground and adjusted for topographic relief, they can be integrated with other geographic data sets and models to explore more complex studies of ecosystems and biodiversity across space and time.

Mapping Forest Damage from Hurricane Milton on Florida’s West Coast
Rising sea levels and increased ocean temperatures are supercharging hurricanes. Using satellite data can help monitor vulnerable ecosystems.

Beyond the Visible: Landsat Next’s New Spectral Bands
With Landsat Next’s 26 new spectral bands, we’ll be able to see our planet like never before. Landsat Next’s enhanced capabilities will provide scientists, farmers, and decision-makers with critical data to tackle global challenges.

NASA Study Finds Potential Carbon Sink in Boreal Forest Growth
New research led by Landsat 8/9 Project Scientist Chris Neigh used Landsat and ICESat-2 data to investigate how boreal forests growth could sequester carbon.

Undamming the Klamath
Between October 2023 and October 2024, the four dams of the Klamath Hydroelectric Project were taken down, opening more than 400 miles of salmon habitat.

Mapping Grasslands: An Underappreciated Ecosystem
Grasslands tend to get left out of conservation discussion. New research from the World Resources Institute maps how they’ve changed over the past 20 years.

Mangroves Are Losing Their Resilience
Mangroves, the iconic trees and shrubs of the Florida Everglades, are under increased stress due to more frequent, intense hurricanes.