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Classified land cover and vegetation canopy cover data for an aeolian dune field near Lees Ferry, AZ

Metadata Updated: November 12, 2025

These data were compiled for assessing how geomorphic changes measured as topographic differences from repeat surveys represent measured and modelled estimates of aeolian sediment transport and dune mobility. Objective(s) of our study were to investigate whether topographic changes can serve as a proxy for aeolian transport and sediment mobility in dunefield environments. This was accomplished by relating topographic changes to modeled and observed estimates of sediment transport and dune mobility over months to decades within a partially vegetated dunefield starved of upwind sediment supplies. We specifically tested if topographic changes measured as net and total volume changes and topographic surface roughness differences provide evidence for intra-annual differences and decadal changes in sediment mobility for dune sand that is either currently bare, vegetated, or biocrust-covered. Lastly, these data were used as a framework for interpreting how aeolian transport and sediment mobility has changed for current land cover types over the preceding four decades. These data represent monthly topographic surveys and in-field sediment transport data collected between February 13, 2020 and December 16, 2020, piloted aerial imagery collected in 1984, 2002, 2009, 2013, and 2021, unoccupied aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery collected in March 2021, classification of land cover, and tabular summaries of topographic changes derived from these datasets. These data were collected between 1984 and 2021 within a small aeolian dunefield near the confluence of the Paria and Colorado Rivers, upstream of Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. These data were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey. These data can be used to 1) to evaluate how dune surfaces with bare sand, sand with vegetated cover, and sand with biological soil crust cover (biocrust) change on a monthly time scale with differences in wind strength and 2) assess how the dunefield surface changed with vegetation loss and expansion over almost 4 decades. Additionally, these data could be used to assess detailed changes in landscape cover over monthly and decadal time scales.

Access & Use Information

Public: This dataset is intended for public access and use. License: No license information was provided. If this work was prepared by an officer or employee of the United States government as part of that person's official duties it is considered a U.S. Government Work.

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Dates

Metadata Created Date September 13, 2025
Metadata Updated Date November 12, 2025

Metadata Source

Harvested from DOI USGS DCAT-US

Additional Metadata

Resource Type Dataset
Metadata Created Date September 13, 2025
Metadata Updated Date November 12, 2025
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Maintainer
Identifier http://datainventory.doi.gov/id/dataset/usgs-658efcd9d34e3265ab14d2bc
Data Last Modified 2024-01-02T00:00:00Z
Category geospatial
Public Access Level public
Bureau Code 010:12
Metadata Context https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema/catalog.jsonld
Metadata Catalog ID https://ddi.doi.gov/usgs-data.json
Schema Version https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
Catalog Describedby https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema/catalog.json
Harvest Object Id 345eb939-ee90-4045-89de-ec6b4b36f6ca
Harvest Source Id 2b80d118-ab3a-48ba-bd93-996bbacefac2
Harvest Source Title DOI USGS DCAT-US
Metadata Type geospatial
Old Spatial -111.5993, 36.8602, -111.5958, 36.8627
Source Datajson Identifier True
Source Hash d376cd59aec8a36adc1aeb8d4b81346145f49a174bd071ef5d7fd53e386834da
Source Schema Version 1.1
Spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": -111.5993, 36.8602, -111.5993, 36.8627, -111.5958, 36.8627, -111.5958, 36.8602, -111.5993, 36.8602}

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