The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with NASA, has named the new Landsat Science Team that will support the world’s longest-running Earth observation mission for a planned 2026-2030 term.
The team brings together experts from universities, private industry, and federal and international agencies to help the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and NASA ensure Landsat continues delivering trusted, publicly available data that supports disaster response, agricultural management, water resources, land stewardship, and national security.
Science Focus Areas of the New Landsat Science Team (2026–2030)
The Landsat Science Team supports the USGS and NASA in maintaining scientific integrity, data quality, and mission continuity across the Landsat program. Their work informs mission planning and development and helps maximize the value of the Landsat archive through improved data products, expanded applications and strategic insight that helps the Landsat program continue to serve the public effectively.
The Landsat Science Team will provide collective analysis and advice on a range of priority issues as defined by the USGS and NASA. In addition, each team member will lead research on a variety of topical areas deemed to be of interest to the Landsat program.
Research areas include atmospheric correction and calibration methods to ensure consistent reflectance across the Landsat archive. Team members will also look at improving data processing pipelines and interoperability with international satellite systems to support integrated Earth observations. Several studies are focused on land-surface processes, including crop condition, evapotranspiration, soil and residue detection, and non-photosynthetic vegetation, which support agricultural monitoring and conservation.
Water cycle and aquatic focused research includes inland and coastal water-quality mapping, harmful algal bloom detection, and refined snow cover characterization. Additional studies address fire monitoring, volcanic activity, and geothermal systems. Other work is centered on developing tools that help translate Landsat data into actionable products for science, management, and policy.
The Landsat Science Team members and their planned research:
Atmospheric Correction and Calibration
Pathfinding the steps to ensure global analysis ready consistent reflectance from the Landsat MSS to Landsat Next era
- Dr. David Roy (PI), Michigan State University
- Dr. Hankui K. Zhang, South Dakota State University
- Dr. Lin Yan, Michigan State University
Fully probabilistic atmospheric correction for Landsat
- Dr. Nimrod Carmon (PI), University of California, Los Angeles
- Dr. Gregory Okin, University of California, Los Angeles
Maintenance and Refinement of the Land Surface Reflectance Code (LaSRC) for Landsat and Sentinel 2
- Dr. Eric Vermote (PI), NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Towards a harmonized atmospheric correction for EnMAP, CHIME, Landsat archive, and Landsat Next observables
- Dr. Raquel De Los Reyes (PI), The German Aerospace Center (DLR)
Interoperability and Data Processing
Synergistic data processing pipelines for Landsat and European satellite missions
- Dr. David Frantz (PI), Trier University
- Dr. Patrick Hostert, Humboldt University of Berlin
- Dr. Sebastian van der Linden, University of Greifswald
- Dr. Dirk Pflugmacher, Humboldt University of Berlin
- Dr. Cornelius Senf, Technical University of Munich
Stronger together – next generation interoperability for Landsat and Copernicus
- Dr. Peter Strobl (PI), European Commission
Maximizing the impact of interoperable Landsat Analysis-Ready Surface Reflectance for Operational Land, Water and Antarctic Monitoring
- Medhavy Thankappan (PI), Geoscience Australia
- Dr. Kimberlee Baldry, Geoscience Australia
- Dr. Courtney Bright, Geoscience Australia
Agriculture, Vegetation, and Land Surface Processes
Developing non-photosynthetic vegetation cover capabilities for Landsat Next
- Dr. Phillip Dennison (Co-PI), University of Utah
- Dr Michael Campbell (Co-PI), University of Utah
Improving and synergizing Landsat evapotranspiration and albedo using multi-satellite observations
- Dr. Yun Yang (PI), Cornell University
- Dr. Zhuosen Wang, University of Maryland
OpenET: Supporting US sustainable water management with Landsat
- Dr. Forrest Melton (PI), NASA Earth Science Division
From leaf to Landsat: A multi-scale approach to developing information for agricultural management from Landsat Next
- Dr. Kyle Kipper (PI), USDA Agriculture Research Service
- Dr. Martha Anderson, USDA Agriculture Research Service
Measuring Agricultural Conservation Land Cover with Next Generation Earth Observation: Detecting Green Vegetation, Crop Residue, and Soil in the Context of Surface Moisture Variability
- Dr. Dean Hively (PI), USGS Lower Mississippi Water Science Center
Tracking Crop Growth and Condition in Near Real-time Using Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 Data
- Dr. Feng Gao (PI), USDA Agriculture Research Service
Water, Snow, and Aquatic Systems
Harmonizing inland and coastal water quality monitoring from the Landsat Program: Harmful algal blooms
- Dr. Ryan O’Shea (PI), Science Systems and Applications, Inc
Next generation snow cover mapping and establishment of a long-term ground validation site
- Dr. Edward Bair (PI), Leidos, Inc.
Fire and Disturbance
Advancing fire monitoring with Landsat Next and Canada’s WildFireSat
- Dr. Morgan Crowley (PI), Canadian Forest Service
Volcanoes and Geothermal Systems
Characterizing/monitoring active volcanoes and geothermal systems with Landsat
- Dr. Greg Vaughan (PI), USGS Astrogeology Science Center
Science Applications and User Engagement
From pixels to products to policy: Creating and sharing information to advance science and applications with Landsat
- Dr. Mike Wulder (PI), Canadian Forest Service
