NLCD 2001 - nationwide land cover at 30-meter resolution
Written by Glenn Letham (GISuser editor)
23 January 2007
The Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium is a group of federal agencies who first joined together in 1993 (MRLC 1992) to purchase Landsat 5 imagery for the conterminous U.S. and to develop a land cover dataset called the National Land Cover Dataset (NLCD 1992). In 1999, a second-generation MRLC consortium was formed to purchase three dates of Landsat 7 imagery for the entire United States (MRLC 2001) and to coordinate the production of a comprehensive land cover database for the nation called the National Land Cover Database (NLCD 2001). These data are now available via FTP download.
Prior to download, users have a number of viewing options to get a glimpse of the data. A graphical query reveals a mapserver image of the area of interest; path/row query; list query (ie. list dataset); or view data products by reflectance characteristics.
About the MRLC Program Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics data are designed to meet the needs of Federal agencies for nationally consistent satellite remote sensing and land-cover information. Imagery and land cover data are now available for two time periods, the first with a nominal date of 1992, and the second with a nominal date of 2001. Data for each period are available for order or download.
Interested in Participating?
Agencies interested in becoming an MRLC consortium agency can contact the EROS Data Center MRLC Coordinator (
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
). The consortium welcomes additional federal and state partner agencies interested in assisting in either the population of the Landsat database or collaboration in developing the Land Cover database.
View data from the mapserver
Other groups or individuals can participate in the MRLC program by simply accessing the web site at http://www.mrlc.gov and researching, browsing or ordering data for the nominal cost of reproduction. Data are to be used only for non-commercial ventures.
Top iPhone related GIS and Geo Tech news stories from 2009 - At the end of the year its always interesting for us to look at some of the stats and results to identify trends and more important, to see what our readers think is hot! In the "news" category it seems that iPhone related geo tech items were extremely popular.
Geo Social Location Checkin to Twitter from iPhone - With the cool SXSW event taking place Austin, TX, everyone who's anyone in social and social location seems to have rolled out updates this week, making your choice for how to check-in to your social media bookmarks even tougher to decide on!
10 Awesome GIS and Mapping apps for the iPhone - I recall last year at the ESRI UC when an iPhone was on stage showing a prototype app (think ArcPad on iPhone). It was then that I realized the iPhone platform is going to be BIG in mapping and there's a ton of opportunity for developers.
Nokia Booklet 3G, unboxing video and image gallery... Those of you in the USA who pop in to BestBuy occasionally, you may have seen a stand showing off the Nokia Booklet 3G. A sleek, 3G enabled, SIM slot (AT&T) sporting netbook.
Interesting Tweeple - 10 Geo Technology & Geo-Social Women of Twitter - given the growing love for geospatial and location-aware technologies, I’ve decided to hype 10 women that I feel make a significant contribution to the Geo-Twittersphere. If you’d like to add 10 knowledgeable and useful Twitter contacts to your Geo following list I highly suggest the following: (in no particular order)
10 Geo Social Location-Aware Apps Making Waves... With Twitter's opening of their location API to developers there's going to be a ton of third party apps that will enable Twitter users to share location-aware information via their Twitter accounts.
Signs that indicate you may be a GeoGeek (aka. GeoNerd) and some suggested Geo blogs - Chances are good that if you are a Geo Geek then you already know it and likely refer to yourself as one. However, there’s many of you out there that may be on the fence and wondering… “am I a Geo Geek?" Read on for a comprehensive list of signs you might be a GeoGeek followed up by some suggested Geoblog reading.
Real-time GPS Mapping and GIS Solution Aids Efficient Disaster Management - Saturday, February 7, 2009 will forever be known as Black Saturday in the State of Victoria, Australia. In the midst of a 10-year drought, a record breaking heat wave descended upon the state, with temperatures exceeding 45 degrees C (110-120 deg F), breaking all-time record highs in some cities - Victoria Police Use Trimble Juno SC Handhelds to Speed Assessment of Damage Caused by Bush Fires.
2010 ESRI Federal User Conference February 17-19, 2010, Washington D.C. Walter E. Washington Convention Center - The FedUC is the largest geospatial conference for federal agencies. Connect with other leaders, decision makers, and GIS professionals.
The International LiDAR Mapping Forum 2010 - Tenth Anniversary Event! ILMF 2010 will be held from March 3 - 5, 2010 at the Hyatt Regency in Denver at Colorado Convention Center.
The NAVTEQ 2010 Global LBS Challenge Awards Ceremony will be held during Ignite at O'Reilly Where 2.0. Be among the first to hear as NAVTEQ announces the winners for the North America region. Participants will be competing for a global prize pool of $10 million and growing by showcasing pre-commercial location-enabled apps using NAVTEQ map data & products. March 30, 2010, during Ignite Where, 7:30pm - 9:00pm, at the Marriott San Jose, CA
WHERE2.0 2010 - Now in its sixth year, the Where 2.0 Conference is where the grassroots and leading edge developers building location-aware technology intersect with the businesses and entrepreneurs seeking out location apps, platforms, and hardware to gain a competitive edge. For 15% use Discount Code: whr10lbs
Community 
The Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium is a group of federal agencies who first joined together in 1993 (MRLC 1992) to purchase Landsat 5 imagery for the conterminous U.S. and to develop a land cover dataset called the National Land Cover Dataset (NLCD 1992). In 1999, a second-generation MRLC consortium was formed to purchase three dates of Landsat 7 imagery for the entire United States (MRLC 2001) and to coordinate the production of a comprehensive land cover database for the nation called the National Land Cover Database (NLCD 2001). These data are now available via FTP download.
See more 
