An operational data fusion framework is built to generate dense time-series Landsat-like images for a cloudy region by fusing Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data products and Landsat imagery. The Spatial and Temporal Adaptive Reflectance Fusion Model (STARFM) is integrated in the framework. Compared to earlier implementations of STARFM, several improvements have been incorporated in the operational data fusion framework.

Cloud forest in the Central Highlands of Guatemala provides important ecosystem services for the Q’eqchi’ Maya but has been disappearing at an increasing rate in recent decades. This research documents changes in cloud forest cover, explores some contributing factors to deforestation, and considers forest preservation and food security implications for Q’eqchi’ communities. We used a transdisciplinary framework that synthesized remote sensing/GIS analysis of land cover change, focus group dialogs, and surveys.

This paper describes the Salt Lake Valley urban flux study that was designed to understand the role of vegetation and urbanization on CO₂ and surface energy fluxes over surfaces typical of urbanized and pre-urbanized land cover in the semi-arid Salt Lake Valley. The eddy covariance technique was applied at two different sites with distinct land forms within an urbanizing mountain basin.

The ecological distribution of Cytauxzoon felis, an often-fatal tick-borne apicomplexan that infects domestic cats, has not been evaluated or identified despite its continued emergence. Infection of C. felis is characterized by lethargy, icterus, fever, anorexia, anemia, and death. The natural vertebrate reservoir of C. felis is the bobcat (Lynx rufus). To determine the possible distribution of C. felis in three states where infection is common (Oklahoma, Missouri, and Arkansas), two separate approaches to ecological niche modeling were implemented.

Characterizing and quantifying distributions of shrubland ecosystem components is one of the major challenges for monitoring shrubland vegetation cover change across the United States. A new approach has been developed to quantify shrubland components as fractional products within National Land Cover Database (NLCD). This approach uses remote sensing data and regression tree models to estimate the fractional cover of shrubland ecosystem components.

Although recent climatic warming has markedly increased fire activity in many biomes, this trend is spatially heterogeneous. Understanding the patterns and controls of this heterogeneity is important for anticipating future fire regime shifts at regional scales and for developing land management policies. To assess climatic and land cover controls on boreal forest fire regimes, we conducted macroscopic‐charcoal analysis of sediment cores and GIS analysis of landscape variation in south‐central Alaska, USA.

We attempt to describe and explain the peculiarly restricted distribution of the globally threatened Ethiopian Bush-crow Zavattariornis stresemanni. At a regional scale, models containing only correlates of land cover suggested a far wider distribution of suitable habitat in north-east Africa than the area actually occupied. However, models including only climate variables predicted the known distribution almost perfectly, and suggested that the species’ area of occupancy is delimited by a pocket of climate that is cooler, dryer and more seasonal than surrounding areas.

The Ethiopian Rift Valley is a dry land zone where for a long time pastoral communities have made their living from acacia-based woodlands. But many pastoralists have changed from a pastoral way of life to mixed farming over time. The aim of this study was to evaluate land-use and land cover (LULC) changes in the Central Rift Valley dry lands of Ethiopia, and determine the role of drought vulnerability as a driver. A combination of GIS/remote sensing techniques, drought vulnerability analyses, field observation and surveying were employed.

Land-cover proportions of mixed pixels can be predicted using soft classification. From the land-cover proportions, a hard land-cover map can be predicted at sub-pixel spatial resolution using super-resolution mapping techniques. It has been demonstrated that the Hopfield Neural Network (HNN) provides a suitable method for super-resolution mapping. To increase the detail and accuracy of the sub-pixel land-cover map, supplementary information at an intermediate spatial resolution can be used.

Widespread anthropogenic land-cover change over the last five centuries has influenced the global climate system through both biogeochemical and biophysical processes. Models indicate that warming from carbon emissions associated with land cover conversion have been partially offset if not outweighed by cooling from elevated albedo, but considerable uncertainty remains partly because of uncertainty in model treatments of albedo.

This study investigated whether the current lateral boundary for estuaries in South Africa, i.e. the estuarine functional zone (EFZ), includes all estuarine habitats. The EFZ covers 173 930 ha in 304 estuaries/outlets nationally. Field surveys and analysis of available aerial images showed that 82 (12 956.70 ha) of these estuaries (26%) had estuarine habitats occurring outside of this boundary. As a result of mapping scale, the National Vegetation Map does not represent habitats that are associated with small estuaries (approximately 50% of South Africa's estuaries).

To assess the potential of high-resolution satellite data for land-cover monitoring in the Greater Horn of Africa, we used a regular sampling grid of 170 sites (each measuring 20 km × 20 km) located at the confluence of the latitudes and meridians across the study area. For each of these sites, Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper (ETM) satellite data were acquired for the years 1990 and 2000. A dot grid visual interpretation was used to assess land-cover change between the two dates in each of the sites.