EPSCoR Research Fellows: NSF: Building Radar Expertise for Improved Sub-Seasonal Tree Growth Monitoring and Research Capacity in Idaho

This Research Infrastructure Improvement (RII) EPSCoR Research Fellows project provides a fellowship to an Associate professor at the University of Idaho. This work will be conducted in collaboration with researchers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA. Through the fellowship, the PI will address a key question: can radar remote sensing help to improve the nation’s ability to monitor forest vigor as forests across the western United States continue to decline? The project will use remote sensing, ecophysiology, and environmental data science to combine radar-based measures of vegetation moisture with optical indicators of tree growth. Through this research, the project will also help expand Idaho’s radar expertise that will be increasingly important as a new national satellite radar system creates major opportunities to track vegetation conditions relevant to forestry, agriculture, and wildfire risk reduction. Workforce development will be strengthened through a new radar remote sensing module in the University of Idaho’s curriculum, while annual field‑day engagement will help stakeholders understand and apply these new capabilities. Collaboration with forest‑sector partners will promote early adoption of radar‑enhanced monitoring and support long‑term economic and resource‑management benefits. This research addresses the critical lack of vegetation radar expertise in Idaho while advancing the science of remote sensing for monitoring sub-seasonal tree growth dynamics. To meet both the capacity-building and scientific objectives, the project will test the overarching hypothesis that integrating passive optical estimates of photosynthetic potential with radar-derived indicators of tree water status substantially improves remote monitoring of sub-seasonal radial tree growth dynamics. The methodology will connect daily field measurements of tree growth and water deficit to radar observations at both in situ and satellite scales with technical guidance from Jet Propulsion Laboratory collaborators. The project will strengthen Idaho’s research infrastructure by building faculty expertise in radar science, expanding student training in remote sensing, and enhancing an EPSCoR jurisdiction to use radar data. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.