Research

• Overview

• News

• 5 Year Plan

• Publications

• Data & Collaborations

• High Tech Landscapes

Whats New at YERC

• YERC-NASA-CSU partnership mapped the percent cover of sagebrush, herbaceous, and bare ground cover in Yellowstone: Scientists from YERC, NASA and California State University team up to map the percent cover of sagebrush, herbaceous, and bare ground cover in Yellowstone at resolution of 10m by fusing peak green Landsat, late fall Airborne Visible and Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS), and Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR).

• Long-Term Disease Analysis Indicates Canine Distemper is Episodic and the Likely Cause of Mortality in Yellowstone’s Canids  With funding from the National Park Service, YERC researchers have periodically sampled canine blood serum as part of a long-term disease monitoring program in Yellowstone National Park since 1990.  In the summer and fall of 2005, YERC senior scientist Jennifer Sheldon observed and reported behavioral evidence (and mortality) in Yellowstone’s canid community consistent with symptoms of canine distemper.  This study was completed by researchers from the University of Minnesota, Yellowstone National Park, and YERC, who teamed together to analyze serum samples collected from wolves, coyotes, and foxes spanning nearly twenty years.

• YERC-NASA-NPS Partnership Creates an Ecosystem Monitoring and Analysis System for the Health of Yellowstone National Park.  YERC Scientists teamed with NASA and scientists at Yellowstone National Park to create an analysis tool that monitors the health of YNP using remote sensing data on plant productivity.  The analysis system selected the severe drought of 2001-04 to develop the system and examine the impacts on Yellowstone’s plant communities.

• YERC and HyPerspectives Announce the Launch of ClimateScape, a Web Application Mashup of Real-Time Meteorological and Water Quality Sensors, Remote Sensing Imagery, GIS Data Products, and NASA Climate Models.  The interactive tools within ClimateScape will provide information to increase our understanding of regional and global climate change.

• Using Remote Sensing Fusion to Map the Distribution and Quantity of Coarse Woody DebrisYellowstone Ecological Research Center (YERC) and Ames Research Center fused AVIRIS and AirSAR to map the Coarse Woody Debris in post-1988 forest ecosystem. The result was validated by intensive field survey. See abstract in PDF