Highlights

Since 1989, the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) has submitted annual reports to Congress called Our Changing Planet. The reports describe the status of USGCRP research activities, provide progress updates, and document recent accomplishments.

In particular, Our Changing Planet highlights progress and accomplishments in interagency activities. These highlights represent the broad spectrum of USGCRP activities that extend from Earth system observations, modeling, and fundamental research through synthesis and assessment, decision support, education, and public engagement.

This image of Pee Dee River in South Carolina was captured by NASA’s Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) instrument aboard a September 17, 2018 science flight.

Hurricane Florence struck the Carolinas on September 14, 2018, causing widespread flooding and damage. In the aftermath of the storm, NASA deployed airborne radar to map floodwaters threatening the region, supplying federal, state, and local agencies with information critical to disaster response efforts.

Airborne radar is able to “see” through cloud cover to image the ground below during day and night and can map flooding occurring under...

A natural-color image captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Terra satellite on August 27, 2017, shows dozens of wildfires burning in the western United States.

Wildfires affect communities throughout the United States each year, threatening lives, property and infrastructure, and ecosystems.^[1] Understanding the climatic conditions that influence wildfire patterns can improve our ability to predict the occurrence and severity of future wildfires, and ultimately support the development of effective adaptation strategies.

In response to this need, multiple programs within the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Department of the Interior’s...

USGCRP agencies and interagency groups played a leading role in the development of a Belmont Forum international Collaborative Research Action (CRA) launched in April 2019, focused on issues at the intersection of climate, environment, and human health.

In addition to an international scoping workshop organized by the Interagency Crosscutting Group on Climate Change and Human Health (CCHHG) and International Activities Interagency Working Group (IAIWG) in April 2018, USGCRP member agencies (including NIH, NOAA, and NSF) participated in a year-long,...

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Highlights

Interagency data products and research inform hurricane response and recovery in the Carolinas

Drought and wildfire research supports adaptation planning in the western United States

Interagency efforts help lead a new international climate and health research effort