National Digital Orthoimagery Program Subcommittee

The subcommittee’s accomplishments for 2016 include the following:

• FSA acquired nearly 1.7 million square miles of 4-band (natural color and near color infra-red) imagery in 22 states. Fourteen states were collected at .6 meter resolution through a partnership “buy-up” option and all the remaining states are at 1 meter resolution.
• An innovative addition to NAIP called the Early Access Web Services (EAWS) provides minimally processed NAIP imagery via web service protocols on average between 2 and 7 business days after acquisition. This allows FSA and partner agencies to perform time sensitive work with the most current imagery available months in advance of receiving production level NAIP imagery.
• 2016 was the end of the current NAIP IDIQ. FSA worked diligently in 2015 and 2016 to revalidate FSA and partner agency user requirements for imagery, and carried that information forward in planning for what imagery acquisition and delivery may look like in 2017 and beyond. A robust Analysis of Alternatives (AOA) and Recommended Alternative were provided for FSA Executive Leadership review and a course of action has since been approved. FSA will extend current contracts to cover 2017 imagery needs and work throughout 2017 in an Integrated Project Team (IPT) environment to build a new IDIQ for 2018 and beyond. The new IDIQ will align with USDA Procurement Advisory No. 101B, Shared First Policy in USDA Contracts.
• NDOP has been evaluating the new High Resolution NAIP Imagery (1 feet resolution) offered from Hexagon Corporation called Valtus. This service contains NAIP Imagery at one feet resolution and 4-band with FGDC compliant metadata. Valtus is offered by Hexagon as a Web Map Service compatible with ESRI ArcMap and AutoCAD. Valtus content is supported by acquisitions from the main contractors to the NAIP program. Valtus expects most of the United States including Hawaii, Puerto Rico and sections of Alaska to be completed by the end of 2017.
• In FY 2015, USDA-FSA-APFO and USGS-Eros Data Center along with funding support from USDA-NRCS have coordinated the scanning of NHAP. Scanned high resolution NHAP is made available to the Federal, State, Local government and private citizens from USGS-Earth Explorer (EE) site. In FY 2014, less than 5% of the continental United States was available with high resolution NHAP. At the end of FY 2016, approximately 70% is available via USGS-EE.
• NOAA collected 96 tide controlled coastal imagery datasets to support shoreline mapping efforts.
• NOAA collected oblique imagery along the West coast and Mid-Atlantic coast for coastal zone management applications.
• NDOP members have been providing user requirements to the Requirements, Capabilities and Analysis for Earth Observations (RCA-EO) study by DOI-USGS. RCA-EO provides data and analyses to help optimize investments in Earth observing technology and products to better meet user needs. The RCA-EO is collecting information from NDOP members including Imagery/Elevation data types, resolution, sensors and products.
• NDOP members (USDA-NRCS, USDA-FSA, NOAA and DOD-NGA) have worked together to acquire new Orthoimagery in FY 2016 for the following areas in Hawaii and the US Pacific Basin: Hawaii, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the Marshall Islands.
• The NDOP Technical Subcommittee held meetings during the year to discuss technical issues that affect our member agencies, with the principal goal to share information and save time and costs. In 2016, some key topics of discussion included determining requirements for Earth observation systems, aircraft and unmanned aerial systems sensor technology, new commercial satellite capabilities, and the scanning of historical film collected by traditional film cameras.

The subcommittee’s accomplishments for 2015 include the following:

• At the recommendation of GAO and the direction of the FGDC Chair, the NDOP reassessed the feasibility of the “Imagery for the Nation” initiative, with the goal of identifying discrete steps that could be taken to further a national imagery program benefitting government at all levels. The NDOP met in person in May and again via teleconferences in June and prepared a report that assessed feasibility, offered options, and identified barriers that must be resolved before an initiative of this magnitude can succeed. The report was presented at the September FGDC Steering Committee Meeting.
• As the primary source of aerial imagery for USDA, the Farm Service Agency (FSA) administers the National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP), leveraging partnership funds from other Federal, State, and local entities to acquire imagery during the growing season over the continental United States. In 2015, FSA acquired nearly 1.8 million square miles of four-band (natural color and near color infrared) imagery in 27 States. Two States were collected at 0.5-meter resolution through a partnership “buy-up” option and all the remaining States are at 1-meter resolution. An innovative addition to NAIP, called the Early Access Web Services, provides minimally processed NAIP imagery via Web service protocols on average between 2 and 7 business days after acquisition. This allows FSA and partner agencies to perform time-sensitive work with the most current imagery available months in advance of receiving production-level NAIP imagery.
• High resolution imagery was collected through multiple funding partnerships with local, State, and Federal agencies. By combining the requirements and funding of these entities, 109,788 square miles of 3-inch, 6-inch, 1-foot, and 2-foot imagery was efficiently received for the benefit of all. The last High Resolution Orthoimagery program data, acquired through the multiple funding partnerships, was received in September 2015. With responsibility for management of the HSIP transferring from NGA to DHS, and with the USGS/National Geospatial Program’s elimination of the “in-kind” services provided to the HSIP 133 Cities Urban Areas imagery acquisitions, there does not currently appear to be a clear methodology to coordinate future high resolution acquisitions. Therefore, NDOP anticipates fiscal year 2015 to be the last year of coordinated acquisition in this area.
• The NOAA collected tide-controlled imagery in 54 coastal areas to support shoreline mapping efforts.
• The NDOP members (USDA–NRCS, USDA–FSA, NOAA, and DOD–NGA) have worked together to acquire new Orthoimagery in fiscal year 2015 for the following: Hawaii, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Republic of Palau, and the Federated States of Micronesia.
• The NDOP Technical Subcommittee held numerous meetings throughout the year to discuss technical issues that affect our member agencies, with the principal goal to share information and save time and costs. In 2015, some key topics of discussion were unmanned aircraft systems (Technology and Agency Acquisition Policy), new digital camera systems, satellite imagery systems, scanning and archiving legacy aerial photography, and high resolution imagery services.