Eyes on Earth Episode 86 - Tours at EROS

ADAMSON

Hello everyone, and welcome to another episode of Eyes on Earth. We're a podcast that focuses on our ever changing planet and on the people here at EROS and across the globe who use remote sensing to monitor and study the health of Earth. My name is Tom Adamson. I'm your host for this special episode where we focus on communicating what we do at EROS.

ADAMSON

For that reason, our guest today is Ann Tripp, the outreach coordinator at EROS.

TRIPP

Thank you for having me here today. It's wonderful to be able to share what happens at EROS.

ADAMSON

Well, a little bit of background about EROS. What do the letters stand for, first of all?

TRIPP

It is an acronym for Earth Resources Observation and Science, and we are under USGS and the Department of the Interior. So we are a federal facility.

ADAMSON

And a little bit more background. What is our mission at EROS?

TRIPP

Our mission is kind of the two big things that happen at EROS. We are the home of the Landsat satellite program. And that is a series of satellites that look back at Earth. And we look at land change and also land cover change. The other big deal that happens here is we have one of the largest civilian archives of land imaging in the world right here in a cornfield in South Dakota.

ADAMSON

We've had some limitations to our tours recently because of COVID. Are we open to the public yet?

TRIPP

I'm excited to say we are on a scheduled basis. So if you are interested in visiting EROS, we would love to have you out. Please call ahead. We would welcome your visit.

ADAMSON

We will also make sure there's an email address and that phone number on the website where this podcast is.

TRIPP

Absolutely.

ADAMSON

What can people expect to see and learn about when they come out here to EROS to take a tour?

TRIPP

Well, the first thing that you're going to see is we have got an amazing display of a model of the Landsat satellite. You're going to learn a lot of history about the Landsat program and what is going on with it today. You're going to hear about what we do with the imagery that's collected from the satellites and how it's used to benefit mankind and preserve our natural resources.

TRIPP

You're going to get to see a lot of satellite imagery along with just learning a little bit more about the amazing work that happens here.

ADAMSON

How long does a tour take?

TRIPP

Typically 45 minutes to an hour. It depends on the questions. I would probably lean a little bit closer to an hour for the average tour.

ADAMSON

And we'll make sure that we answer every question.

TRIPP

Absolutely. And if you stumped us, we'll find the answer.

ADAMSON

Sounds good. So let's spend a couple of minutes talking about what do you think are the most popular or most well liked parts of the tour?

TRIPP

A lot of it depends on the tour group, what they would find to be the most interesting. But for many people, they haven't seen Landsat imagery before. So first of all, when we talk about what the satellite sees, that's very interesting for them. Also, the facts of the satellite with how fast a satellite travels being 17,000 miles an hour.

TRIPP

So it makes that complete orbit of the Earth every 99 minutes. That is astounding to everyone who hears that. As far as the displays, the international cooperators display, which shows the ground stations around the world and how those function is very fascinating for people and also the EarthNow monitor where we are getting recordings from the satellite and now almost near real time feed from the satellite.

TRIPP

So you can actually see what the satellite is seeing is amazing.

ADAMSON

Yes, I agree. People love that stuff and they are amazed by just about everything we say. Yes, I really think that the scale model of Landsat eight that we have hanging from the ceiling in the lobby is really useful to describe how Landsat works. And people really like looking at that.

TRIPP

And if our visitors' interest is in technology, they are very excited when they see the Cray Denali supercomputer in our computer room.

ADAMSON

What are some of the most common questions that you have heard?

TRIPP

I think the most frequent question that we get is why are you located here?

ADAMSON

And that's part of the standard tour anyway. But when you drive out here, you got to drive ten miles across farmland, and then you turn and you drive another mile and you come out over this hill and all of a sudden here's this big building with a water tower and a satellite dish and a radome. So that's already on everybody's mind.

ADAMSON

As soon as they walk in the front door, why are we out here?

TRIPP

And the answer to that question is geographical and a little bit political, so come on out and you'll learn more about that.

ADAMSON

There we go. Sounds good. I'll tell you another interesting question I've gotten. People ask, what about space junk?

TRIPP

Yes. And how does that affect the satellite? There's a team that is watching out for the safety of the satellite. There is debris in space. And at 17,000 miles an hour, we need to protect that satellite so it doesn't run into anything. So they're watching out for that. But, yes, that's a question many people have, is what about all that debris in space?

ADAMSON

What are some other common questions that you have heard?

TRIPP

How do the satellite images get from the satellite to EROS?

ADAMSON

How did they get here at all, right?

TRIPP

Right. And the answer is, we have got a ground station right here at EROS. And then there are other countries around the world that also have ground stations where when the satellite passes over them, they will download imagery. But what sets EROS apart is EROS is the only hub or the only archive for all of it. So those other countries will send those images here to EROS for our archives.

TRIPP

And they are available to the public from the time we receive them, I believe, within a 24 hour window.

ADAMSON

Right. So I hear people ask a lot, how do I get the data myself?

TRIPP

There is a portal through USGS that's called EarthExplorer that all of our archive of imagery can be downloaded from, and it is free and open to the public. So at any point in time, with whatever question you may have, you can download imagery.

ADAMSON

We'll have that link as well on the website where this podcast resides. 

TRIPP

Wonderful. 

ADAMSON

What are your favorite types of tour groups?

TRIPP

You know, every group has its gift. And there is something that is so fun about having a group of younger school age children that are on a field trip come out and their eyes get big and they're just in awe. And there's something that's so interesting about offering a tour to people that are knowledgeable about Landsat and about satellite imagery and just showing them around.

TRIPP

And that's fun, too. How about you?

ADAMSON

There are sometimes these mystery tours that come out here. They come out here on a bus. It's usually a group of retired folks, and sometimes it's a two or three day long trek that they're on and they don't know where they're going next. So when they come off the bus and find out that they're at EROS, they're just super excited about everything because they're excited about wherever they're going to go because they don't know where they're going.

ADAMSON

How about this? What is the strangest question you have ever gotten?

TRIPP

This wasn't a question, but I will never forget this young man. There was a group of elementary students that came out here, and we had been talking about the history of the Landsat program and that Landsat five was actually active just under 29 years. And we had talked about that. And I saw this young man's face go real quizzical, and he was quiet and he was thinking and his face just didn't kind of change.

TRIPP

It was just this questioning look. And so I stopped and I said, Now you look like you have a question. What are you thinking? And he said, Well, if that satellite was up there almost 29 years, what about the astronaut? It was something I had never thought of before to tell, especially the younger kids groups, that the satellites are unmanned.

TRIPP

Bless his heart, he thought there was an astronaut that had just been gone for about 29 years and never gone home. So I thought that was pretty sweet.

ADAMSON

That makes me think when we have groups of kids, I don't want to not allow them to have seemingly outlandish and bold ideas because it was bold and outlandish ideas that got Landsat started to begin with. So it seems like that's the kind of creativity we have to help encourage.

TRIPP

Without those people thinking outside of the box, we wouldn't have a Landsat satellite program watching the changes of our earth.

ADAMSON

Well, let me tell you about an interesting day I had once. It was at least six years ago because you weren't here yet. I'm thinking it was maybe eight or ten years ago. I was the backup tour guide for the Friday after Thanksgiving, and I think there had been an article in the local newspaper in the middle of November about EROS and sort of invited people to come out and take a tour.

ADAMSON

And at this time we did the 10:00 and 2:00 walk-in tours. At 10:00 that day, there were 14 people that showed up for the walk-in tour, and I thought, Well, that's a pretty good group. We usually get groups smaller than that when we had walk-in tours. But at 2:00, there were already about 30 people here by about 1:30.

ADAMSON

And I thought, This is not going to work. This is going to be too big of a group for me. And they just kept coming. It was like we were having a Black Friday doorbuster sale or something. People kept coming in the door, so I quick got a presentation--we have some presentation slides ready to go and I got some of those ready and I brought the group into the auditorium and did a presentation.

ADAMSON

I started at about 5 minutes after 2:00 and there were still people coming in. We ended up with 64 people. As far as I know, that is still the largest group we've ever had, just randomly come in for a walk-in tour, but it was fun to mingle with the people. I'm not going to give you all the guided tours here.

ADAMSON

This just won't work. But look around the lobby and I'll mingle and we'll talk and you ask me questions and that was actually really fun to do it that way.

TRIPP

It is a fascinating place to come visit.

ADAMSON

Can teachers call you up to set up a school visit?

TRIPP

Yes. We love hosting the field trips. Or if teachers just want to learn a little bit more about what happens here, I'm happy to visit with them. We have got some great resources online also that I would be happy to point instructors to. And bottom line is yes, please call.

ADAMSON

And that might be more like local to Sioux Falls field trips coming out here to EROS to actually take a tour. What about a school located outside of the Midwest?

TRIPP

We can certainly do virtual visits. So that is something that if anyone would want to reach out to the center and learn a little bit more about that, please do call. And we would be happy to explore that and the options for that.

ADAMSON

Okay, that sounds good. How long have you been at EROS?

TRIPP

I have been at EROS a little over six years, and it has just been the most interesting position I have ever had in my life. I love learning every day here, and I have discovered that I'm kind of a science nerd and I never knew that before. It's been wonderful.

ADAMSON

Nothing wrong with that.

TRIPP

No.

ADAMSON

A lot of us here are.

TRIPP

Yes.

ADAMSON

Thank you, Ann, for joining us on this episode of Eyes on Earth.

TRIPP

It is my pleasure. Thanks for having me. And also thank you, Tom, for your continued support of the outreach program at EROS. Your knowledge and talent are invaluable.

ADAMSON

My pleasure. And thank you listeners for joining us on Eyes on Earth. You can find all our shows on the USGS EROS website. You can also follow EROS on Facebook or Twitter to find the latest episodes or to subscribe on Apple or Google Podcasts. 

This podcast. This podcast. This podcast. This podcast is a product of the U.S. Geological Survey, Department of Interior.