Editing Land use (section)

=== Land cover monitoring and assessments ===
A primary function of land change science is to document and model long-term patterns of landscape change, which may result from both human activity and natural processes.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Land Cover Monitoring and Assessments {{!}} USGS.gov |url=https://www.usgs.gov/core-science-systems/land-change-science-program/science/land-cover-monitoring-and-assessments |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210210074940/https://www.usgs.gov/core-science-systems/land-change-science-program/science/land-cover-monitoring-and-assessments |archive-date=2021-02-10 |access-date=2021-02-09 |website=www.usgs.gov}}</ref> In the course of monitoring and assessing land cover and land use changes, scientists look at several factors, including where [[Land cover|land-cover]] and land-use are changing, the extent and timescale of changes, and how changes vary through time.<ref name=":7">{{Cite web |title=The Science of LCLUC {{!}} LCLUC |url=https://lcluc.umd.edu/content/science-lcluc |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117170607/https://lcluc.umd.edu/content/science-lcluc |archive-date=2021-01-17 |access-date=2021-03-08 |website=lcluc.umd.edu}}</ref> To this end, scientists use a variety of tools, including [[satellite imagery]] and other sources of [[Remote sensing|remotely sensed data]] (e.g., aircraft imagery), field observations, historical accounts, and reconstruction modeling.<ref name=":3" /> These tools, particularly satellite imagery, allow land change scientists to accurately monitor land-change rates and create a consistent, long-term record to quantify change variability over time.<ref name=":7" /> Through observing patterns in land cover changes, scientists can determine the consequences of these changes, predict the impact of future changes, and use this information to inform strategic [[land management]].