UMD- Department of Geographical Sciences-Students & Alumni

06/08/2026

Could rising seas make mangroves less effective at storing carbon? 🌊

A new study co-authored by Assistant Professor Danghan Xie finds that while some mangrove areas may store more carbon as sea levels rise, entire forests could lose carbon as habitat shrinks and soils erode.

Read more:

Rising Seas Could ‘Drown’ Mangroves, Release Carbon Breadcrumb Home Featured Content Rising Seas Could ‘Drown’ Mangroves, Release Carbon Assistant Professor Danghan Xie co-authored a study showing that mangroves could store less carbon—and even begin releasing it—as sea levels rise. A ne...

06/04/2026

🌲🛰️ Congrats to GEOG Associate Research Professor Adrián Pascual on receiving the 2026 BSOS Early Career Impact Award!

Read how his remote sensing & LiDAR research advances sustainable forest management and inspires the next generation of environmental scientists ⤵️

Associate Research Professor Adrián Pascual Receives BSOS Early Career Impact Award Breadcrumb Home Featured Content Associate Research Professor Adrián Pascual Receives BSOS Early Career Impact Award Pascual is advancing sustainable forest management through innovative remote sensing research and...

06/03/2026

🤩Congratulations to Research Professor Emeritus Eric Vermote on receiving the 2025 William T. Pecora Award!

Vermote's work has helped scientists around the world accurately monitor deforestation, drought, coastlines and other environmental changes. His innovations continue to shape how we understand Earth from space.

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Research Professor Emeritus Eric Vermote Named 2025 Pecora Award Recipient Breadcrumb Home Featured Content Research Professor Emeritus Eric Vermote Named 2025 Pecora Award Recipient Eric Vermote's pioneering atmospheric correction methods have shaped how scientists read satellite data. When scienti...

06/02/2026

🗓️ Registration open for 2026 University Consortium for Geographic Information Science (UCGIS) Symposium at right here at UMD June 15–18!

Join researchers, students + industry leaders exploring “AI Everywhere!” in GeoAI. Four days of workshops, panels, student talks, networking & field trips:

Learn more and register:

Registration Open for UCGIS 2026 Symposium at UMD Breadcrumb Home Event Registration Open For UCGIS 2026 Symposium At UMD The four-day event will bring together researchers, students and industry leaders to explore the future of GeoAI and the theme “AI Everywhere!” The University Consortium for ...

06/01/2026

🤩 Professor Leila De Floriani has been named a Distinguished University Professor, UMD’s highest faculty honor 👏

Her pioneering research in geospatial computing has transformed how scientists analyze and visualize geographic data around the world.

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De Floriani Awarded Distinguished University Professor Title Breadcrumb Home Featured Content De Floriani Awarded Distinguished University Professor Title UMD geospatial computing pioneer Leila De Floriani joins a select group of faculty honored for research that has reshaped how scientists analyze....

05/29/2026

🤩Did you miss our Department Awards? Meet this year’s student, faculty and staff honorees, plus the debut of 3 new awards: Staff Appreciation, GEOG Ambassador and GEOG Linchpin 🏆

Watch the full event on YouTube ▶️

GEOG Celebrates Students, Faculty and Staff at 2026 Ceremony Breadcrumb Home Featured Content GEOG Celebrates Students, Faculty and Staff At 2026 Ceremony Event debuts three new honors while recognizing academic milestones, research and service. The Department of Geographical Sciences held its annua...

05/29/2026

NASA FireSense is helping firefighters stay safer on the fire line 🔥🚜

At a recent workshop in Alabama, GEOG's Joanne Hall and Rob Sohlberg joined partners to highlight sensors installed on fire bulldozers that alert firefighters when temperatures around them get too hot — while also collecting valuable wildfire science data.

05/28/2026

How can AI help detect food crises before they escalate?

A new GeoAI collaboration involving UMD's NASA Harvest, Arizona State University, Washington University in St. Louis and more is developing tools that combine satellite data with natural-language queries to identify early signs of food system instability in conflict- and climate-impacted regions.

The project, funded through the GIFS Challenge from Taylor Geospatial, aims to give humanitarian and food security analysts faster, more actionable insights to support vulnerable communities worldwide.

Learn more:

UMD Researchers Join National Effort to Use GeoAI to Predict Food System Instability Breadcrumb Home Featured Content UMD Researchers Join National Effort To Use GeoAI To Predict Food System Instability The initiative aims to help humanitarian and food security analysts detect emerging agricultural....

05/27/2026

On April 20, a record crowd gathered at the University of Maryland as the Department of Geographical Sciences celebrated more than 100 outstanding high school students from Maryland, D.C. and Virginia at its fifth annual High School Awards Banquet. 🌎✨

Held at the Adele H. Stamp Student Union, the event brought together students, families, educators and the university community to recognize academic achievement and inspire the next generation of geospatial scientists, innovators and problem-solvers.

This year's honorees came from all kinds of backgrounds, but two students' stories illustrate just how many roads can lead to geographical sciences.

Read a little bit about them:

GEOG Honors 100+ High School Students at Annual Awards Banquet Breadcrumb Home Featured Content GEOG Honors 100+ High School Students At Annual Awards Banquet Record turnout marks fifth annual celebration of high school achievement in geographical sciences. The Department of Geographical Sciences ho...