WR 204 Assignment_LULC
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Colorado State University, Fort Collins *
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Course
204
Subject
Geography
Date
Feb 20, 2024
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docx
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3
Uploaded by AmbassadorWorldDonkey41
WR 204 Assignment 6: Land
Cover/Land Use
The objective of this assignment is to is to explore land use and land cover data using Google Earth Engine and the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. Google Earth Engine (GEE) is a cloud-based platform developed by Google that allows scientists and researchers to analyze and process large amounts of remote sensing data for various applications, including studying land cover change. It offers a wide range of remote sensing data, such as satellite imagery, climate data, and terrain data, that can be accessed and analyzed in a single platform, without the need for extensive data management and processing infrastructure. One of the key advantages of GEE is its ability to handle large amounts of data quickly and efficiently. This allows scientists
to process and analyze data that would be too computationally intensive to handle using traditional desktop software. GEE also allows for easy collaboration and sharing of data and analysis results among researchers and scientists worldwide.
More info is available here: https://earthengine.google.com/
The Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium is a collaborative effort among federal agencies, universities, and other organizations to produce a comprehensive and consistent national land cover database for the United States. The Consortium is coordinated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The MRLC Consortium uses a combination of satellite imagery, aerial photography, and other remote sensing data to classify and map land cover across the United States.
More info is available here: https://www.mrlc.gov/viewer/
Figure 1:
Satellite image from Google Earth Engine of a Glacier in 1994
Questions to Answer:
1.
This location is undergoing glacial retreat. Compare the image above with the same location on this website
. The image on the website was taken in 2020. a.
Using the measure tool on the left sidebar on the website (at the bottom), measure the area (in km^2 ) of glacier that has retreated between the image above and the image on the website.
b.
Using the area calculated above, what is the average annual retreat of the glacier in km^2 per year (hint: use the years given above). c.
Zoom out from the location. What country/region is this glacier located?
d.
Click the “Visualize” button, then “Layers>Timelapse” to see the timelapse of this area. Notice how the snow on the surrounding peaks varies significantly between 2000 and 2022. What is the likely cause of this and why might it be useful to know more about exactly when the satellite imagery is taken? 2.
Go to this website
, and play this timelapse from a different location. a.
What is the major land cover change that is occurring? Feel free to look up info using the named places on the map if you cannot recognize it.
b.
What is the name of the large river that flows through this area?
c.
This river happens to flow north from the location. What large inland waterbody does it flow into?
3.
Open the folder titled “Unknown Western US Location”. Compare the 2001 and 2019 landcover images. (Great South Lake area)
a.
What is the primary land cover to the west of the developed region in 2001?
b.
This landcover has changed between 2001 and 2019. The regions that were dark blue were replaced by a few different landcovers. Name one of these new landcovers
c.
Using the site location image and any other external sources, what is the largest waterbody in the site image? (hint: there is a major US city in red to the east)
d.
Look up recent news about this waterbody and the major landcover change that is occurring. Read an article explaining the current issues facing this waterbody, write a paragraph (3 sentences max) summary of the article and provide the link you used.
There is no correct article, this is just to get you to think about the connection between humans and landcover.
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