NASA tracks changes in seasonal flower cycles and migration patterns from the air

Flowers are more than just a sign of spring – they’re part of a natural rhythm shaped by light, temperature, and rainfall. Scientists are now studying that rhythm to better understand how our planet is changing.

A recent study has shown that wildflowers in California can be tracked from above using aircraft and space-based tools.

The technology, originally designed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), picks up subtle changes in color that occur during a plant’s life cycle.

These findings could offer a new way for farmers and natural-resource managers to monitor the health and timing of flowering plants, which are essential to ecosystems and agriculture.

Monitoring seasonal plant life

Scientists from the University of Maryland-College Park and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center teamed up to test how remote sensing could capture large-scale flowering patterns.

They surveyed thousands of acres of protected land using a high-tech tool called an imaging spectrometer.

Built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, the instrument was mounted on a plane and scanned the land below as the plane flew along.

It recorded light in hundreds of narrow wavelength bands, far beyond what the human eye can see. This allowed it to map out the extent of blooming and fading flowers over several months.

It was the first time the instrument had been deployed to track vegetation steadily through the growing season, making this a “first-of-a-kind study,” according to David Schimel, a research scientist at JPL.

The study of vegetation in relation to seasons is known as phenology and it is important to botanists and agriculturalists alike. From wildflowers to crops, most flowering plants are triggered by shifts in weather and daylight length.

In addition, scientists are increasingly focused on this connection to monitor how ecosystems respond to warmer temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns.

Why flowers are hard to track

Field surveys and time-lapse photography have long been used to monitor wildflower life histories. But those methods only offer a limited view.

“One challenge is that, compared to leaves or other parts of a plant, flowers can be pretty ephemeral,” said Yoseline Angel, a scientist from the University of Maryland-College Park and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. “They may last only a few weeks.”

That fleeting nature makes it tough to gather reliable data, especially across large areas. Angel and her team turned to one of the most distinct traits of flowers – their color – as a way to study the timing of blooming from the sky.

Science behind flower color

The bright colors of flowers come from pigments that fall into three main groups. Carotenoids and betalains create yellow, orange, and red tones. Anthocyanins are behind the deep reds, purples, and blues.

These pigments absorb and reflect light in unique ways, creating a “spectral fingerprint.” Using spectrometers, researchers can therefore scan light patterns to identify plants and even track changes as they grow and bloom.

These tools have been used for decades to study Earth and other planets, but now they’re being fine-tuned to observe the seasonal changes in flowering plants.

In 2022, a spectrometer called AVIRIS-NG (Airborne Visible/InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer – Next Generation) flew over two nature preserves in Santa Barbara County: the Jack and Laura Dangermond Preserve and the Sedgwick Reserve.

Among the native plants monitored were Coreopsis gigantea and Artemisia californica. The scans ran from February to June.

The team developed a method to differentiate the flower signals from soil, leaves, and shadows. In doing so, they captured 97% of the spectral differences among those features and were able to pinpoint flowering stages with 80% accuracy.

From wildflowers to agriculture

This method could one day help track flowering plants across the globe.

Since flowers make up nearly 90% of plant species on land, this kind of remote sensing could support a wide range of work – from ecology to food production.

A key goal, Angel noted, is to support farmers and land managers who rely on flowering plants – along with the insects and pollinators that depend on them. These plants are vital for producing fruits, nuts, cotton, and even many medicines.

She’s now applying the same technique to data from EMIT (Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation), another NASA instrument that operates from the International Space Station.

While EMIT’s main purpose is to study mineral dust in dry regions, it can also detect plant pigments.

By combining this space-based data with weather and environmental information, researchers may one day be able to predict events like superblooms – rare bursts of flowers in the desert that follow heavy rains.

Understanding superblooms – the basics

Superblooms are nature’s way of showing off. They happen when a rare combo of perfect weather conditions – like heavy rains after a long drought – triggers wildflowers to explode across a landscape in crazy, vibrant color.

Think entire valleys carpeted in orange poppies, purple lupines, and yellow goldfields, stretching as far as the eye can see.

These blooms don’t just pop up anywhere; they’re most famous in arid places like California’s deserts, where wildflowers lie dormant in the soil, waiting years – sometimes decades – for just the right moment to wake up and party.

Citizen science and the joy of flowers

Angel said one of the most rewarding parts of her research is seeing how much people love flowers.

“I have social media alerts on my phone,” she added, sharing how she stays updated on wildflower sightings around the world.

As flowers continue to signal the pulse of the planet, new technologies are helping us pay closer attention – from the ground, the air, and even from space.

The full study was published in the journal Ecosphere.

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