Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center Who We Are and What We Do

To understand our planet at local, 

regional, national, and global scales, 

people need information about 

Earth’s land surfaces and how they 

are changing. Land remote sensing is 

the key to gathering this information. 

Satellites that capture detailed images 

of Earth’s continents, islands, and 

coastlines are and have been EROS’ 

primary source of remotely sensed data 

since the Center opened in 1973. EROS is 

probably best known as the USGS receiving 

station for Landsat satellite images. However, 

we acquire data and images from many other 

satellites, as well as from other kinds of

remote sensing instruments.

Roughly 1.5 terabytes* of information arrive at EROS 

every day to become part of the largest civilian archive 

of remotely sensed land data in the world. The archive 

represents a perfectly preserved 70-year record of Earth’s land 

surfaces and serves as an invaluable resource for documenting how 

they have changed over time.

*One terabyte = 1,000 gigabytes

Will scarce rainfall in Ethiopia this year mean a

famine next year?

How likely is it that a California forest will 

succumb to devastating wildfires?

Could a bulge in the heart of a 

volcano in Indonesia signal that it’s 

about to erupt?

The more than 600 people at 

EROS work in diverse ways 

to help answer questions 

like these. The answers 

affect millions of people 

worldwide.

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Fact Sheet 2008–3055

July 2008 Printed on recycled paper
Acquiring information is very important, but so is making 

information easily available to those who need it. Every day, 

EROS supplies—primarily via the Internet—nearly a terabyte 

worth of current and historical land data to scientists, natural 

resource managers, urban planners, government decision 

makers, and other users around the world.

EROS is also recognized for its expertise in developing new 

ways to analyze, visualize, and utilize remotely sensed land data 

for studying diverse aspects of Earth’s terrestrial environment. 

We use satellite and other data to study the carbon cycle and 

simulate the effects of climate change, explore the causes 

and effects of wildfires, aid in disaster response activities, 

monitor drought, provide early warning of famines, investigate 

ecological changes and their effects, and improve the prediction 

of volcanic eruptions.

We also create data sets that deal with land cover (for

example, the types of vegetation found in a place) and land 

surface features such as topography. People use these data 

sets to answer questions and solve problems in many different 

countries and settings. Finally, EROS conducts training

classes worldwide on how to use satellite data and

geographic information.

Earth’s land surfaces include areas that are changing rapidly, 

with significant repercussions for populations, economies, and 

the environment. By acquiring, distributing, and developing new 

approaches to using remotely sensed land data, EROS plays 

a pivotal role in helping people everywhere understand these 

changes and their implications.

EROS is a unit of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). 

Created by an act of Congress in 1879, the USGS stands 

as the primary science agency for the Department of 

the Interior. It is sought out by thousands of partners 

and customers for its natural science expertise and 

its vast earth and biological data holdings. The USGS 

is the science provider of choice for accessing the 

data and information required to help resolve complex 

natural resource problems across the Nation and 

around the world.

Understanding the exchange

of carbon between the land and

the atmosphere is critical to

better predict how Earth’s 

climate system will respond 

to changes in carbon dioxide 

concentrations in the 

atmosphere.

Scientists using radar 

technologies can detect

slight bulges in the

ground on or near active 

volcanoes that may indicate 

an imminent eruption.

EROS researchers develop new 

ways to use remotely sensed data 

to help investigate the effects of 

wildfires, monitor how landscapes 

recover after fires, and develop 

strategies for better predicting 

fires and dealing with their 

consequences.

Projects that monitor 

droughts in the United States 

and those that provide early 

warning of conditions that 

may precede famines in 

foreign countries rely on 

satellite images and data sets 

developed at EROS to analyze 

vegetation throughout a 

single growing season or 

across multiple seasons. Contact Information

U.S. Geological Survey

Earth Resources Observation

 and Science (EROS) Center

Sioux Falls, SD 57198

http://eros.usgs.gov

Since 1972, the USGS/EROS archive 

has compiled and preserved a 

diverse collection of current and 

historical imagery and data. This 

unique collection is a comprehensive, 

permanent, and impartial record of our 

planet’s changing land surface.