Lucas Zeller
Remote Sensing Scientist
KBR, Contractor to the USGS EROS Center
Embedded Files
About Me
I am a Remote Sensing Scientist at KBR Inc. working with the USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center. My works sits at the intersection of remote sensing, data science, and AI/ML, with a focus on understanding landscape changes. Some of my current projects include mapping invasive plant species, understanding post-fire vegetation changes in the western U.S. sagebrush biome, and multispectral-hyperspectral satellite data fusion.
Before joining KBR and the USGS EROS Center, I earned a Master's and PhD in Geosciences from Colorado State University, specializing in glaciology, snow hydrology, and remote sensing. My research projects and field campaigns spanned the mountains of Colorado, Alaska, and High Mountain Asia, with funding support from NASA and the USGS.
Publications
(Google Scholar)
Zeller, L., D. McGrath, L. Sass, C. Florentine, J. Downs. Equilibrium line altitudes, accumulation areas and the vulnerability of glaciers in Alaska. Journal of Glaciology, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2024.65
Zeller, L., D. McGrath, S.W. McCoy, J. Jacquet. Seasonal to decadal dynamics of supraglacial lakes on debris-covered glaciers in the Khumbu Region, Nepal. The Cryosphere, 2024. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-525-2024
Zeller, L., D. McGrath, S. O'Neel, L. Sass, C. McNeil, E. Baker. Beyond glacier-wide mass balances: parsing seasonal elevation change into spatially-resolved patterns of accumulation and ablation at Wolverine Glacier, Alaska. Journal of Glaciology, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2022.46
Bonnell, R., et al. Evaluating L-band InSAR snow water equivalent retrievals with repeat ground-penetrating radar and terrestrial lidar surveys in northern Colorado. The Cryosphere, 2024. https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-3765-2024
Marshall, A., E. Wohl, E. Iskin, L. Zeller. Interactions of logjams, channel dynamics, and geomorphic heterogeneity within a river corridor. Water Resources Research, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023WR036512
McGrath, D., L. Zeller, R. Bonnell, W. Reis, S. Kampf, K. Williams, M. Okal, A. Olsen-Mikitowicz, E. Bump, M. Sears, K. Rittger. Declines in peak snow water equivalent and elevated snowmelt rates following the 2020 Cameron Peak wildfire in northern Colorado. Geophysical Research Letters, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL101294
McGrath, D., R. Bonnell, L. Zeller, A. Olsen‑Mikitowicz, E. Bump, R. Webb, HP. Marshall. A Time Series of Snow Density and Snow Water Equivalent Observations Derived From the Integration of GPR and UAV SfM Observations. Frontiers in Remote Sensing, 2022. https://doi.org/10.3389/frsen.2022.886747
Research
Use the links below to learn more about some of my research projects.
Measuring accumulation and ablation on Wolverine Glacier through remote sensing, geophysical surveys, and in-situ observations.
Hydrology of Debris-Covered Glaciers
Using satellite imagery to understand changes in the hydrology of debris-covered glacier systems over seasonal-to-decadal time scales.
Snow Cover Variability in Alaska
Identifying the end of summer snow lines on glaciers across all of Alaska and understanding what controls their changes from year-to-year and glacier-to-glacier.
Snow Hydrology with NASA SnowEx
A collaborative campaign to improve our ability to measure snow-pack properties from space through ground-based observations.
Google Sites
Report abuse