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NACP: Forest Disturbance Intensity for CONUS, 1986-2015

Submitted by ORNL DAAC Staff on 2023-07-12
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Forest disturbance intensity 1986 - 2015
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Forest disturbance intensity 1986 - 2015. This time-integrated map represents the percentage of basal area removal (PBAR) value, regardless of the disturbance year, for pixel locations where only one disturbance event was detected. The maximum PBAR is shown for locations that were disturbed multiple times.

The ORNL DAAC is pleased to announce the release of a new dataset associated with The North American Carbon Program (NACP) by Lu, J., et al (2023):

NACP NAFD Project: Forest Disturbance Intensity for CONUS from Landsat, 1986-2015

This dataset contains estimates of forest disturbance intensity for the conterminous United States from 1986 to 2015. It quantifies the severity/intensity of forest disturbances at 30 m resolution using time series Landsat observations and the vegetation change tracker algorithm. For each disturbance event mapped at a pixel location, the percentage of basal area removal (PBAR) after the disturbance event was estimated based on spectral changes derived from Landsat data and Random Forest models calibrated using field measurements collected by the US Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program. This dataset complements and extends the North American Forest Dynamics-NASA Earth eXchange (NAFD-NEX) US Forest Disturbance History dataset and the NAFD-ATT Forest Canopy Cover Loss dataset from 1986-2010 to 1986-2015. Data are provided in Cloud Optimized GeoTIFF (*.tif) format.

The North American Carbon Program (NACP) is a multi-disciplinary research program designed to obtain scientific understanding of North America's carbon sources and sinks and of the changes in carbon stocks needed to meet societal concerns, and to provide tools for decision makers. NACP began in 2002 and continues to date. The NACP data collection contains continental carbon budgets, dynamics, processes, and management of the sources and sinks of carbon dioxide, methane, and carbon monoxide in North America and in adjacent ocean regions.

Additional data from NACP and other relevant links can be found on the ORNL DAAC's NACP Project Page.

Citation: Lu, J., C. Huang, X. Tao, and K. Schleeweis. 2023. NACP NAFD Project: Forest Disturbance Intensity for CONUS from Landsat, 1986-2015. ORNL DAAC, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA. https://doi.org/10.3334/ORNLDAAC/2059

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