National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Invasive Species

The introduction and dissemination of non-indigenous species is a major economic, environmental and health concern in the 21st century. Such invasive species include diseases such as malaria and West Nile Virus, agricultural pathogens, and plants and animals that compete with and replace native species, with a resulting degradation of the environment and decline in economic productivity.

The number of species introduced into the United States each year is in the thousands. The cost to the U.S. economy to monitor, contain, and control these species is estimated at $100-200 billion per year--an annual cost greater than that for all natural disasters combined. The rate of introduction of invasive species is increasing through the movement of plant, animal and disease organisms that accompanies globalization.

The response to invasive species is shared by a broad community including local, state, and federal agencies responsible for land management and public health, the agricultural industry, conservation organizations and private landowners. Because the cost of control and eradication of invasive species is prohibitive once a species is well established, a primary focus of response programs is to predict where invasive species are likely to appear next so that control measures can be applied when the cost is low and success probable.

Example of a national map of Saltcedar (Tamarisk) habitat. Saltcedars are fire-adapted species that intercept deep water tables and interfere with natural aquatic systems. Saltcedar disrupts the structure and stability of native plant communities and monopolizes limited sources of moisture, increasing the frequency, intensity, and effect of fires and floods.

NASA is applying its capabilities in Earth science to assist the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the National Invasive Species Council in responding to invasive plants. NASA assistance is focused in three areas:

1) Earth observation data from NASA satellites and model outputs for monitoring land cover and climate are being combined with ground data supplied by the agencies responsible for invasive species control to identify the "corridors" that invasive plants are likely to use to spread;

2) NASA's computational capabilities are being utilized to develop systems to generate predictive maps for invasive species quickly; and

3) NASA scientists are participating in the development of an on-line Invasive Species Forecasting System that will provide the user community ready access to these tools for making maps specific to their geographic area and invasive plant concerns. The Invasive Species Forecasting System will be an interactive and flexible tool to assist public and private users respond to the threat of invasive plant species.

NASA is the primary source of Earth observation data for the Invasive Species Forecasting System. Observations and measurements from the Terra, Aqua, QuikSCAT, Landsat 7 and other satellites provide key ecosystem parameters for prediction of invasive species distributions. In the next decade, information from NASA satellites will improve the accuracy and timeliness of climate, weather and ecological forecasts and support cost effective responses to invasive plant species.