I use remote sensing, GeoAI, and geospatial analysis to study the built environment and environmental change. My current work connects building footprints, elevation, and aerial imagery with open data and interactive tools.
Building footprints and open data
US Building Footprint (USBF) is my main research project. I develop methods for selective refinement of GlobalBuildingAtlas outlines using aerial imagery, signed elevation, and model evidence. The published six-state update contains 25.1 million buildings, retaining original geometry, source heights, stable identifiers, and edit provenance.
Local boundary proposals from the September 2026 research version; the methods post reports the corresponding evaluation.
Project overview · Dataset · Code · Methods and experiments
Geospatial tools: US Buildings
I designed and built US Buildings, a browser workspace for exploring USBF and comparison inventories. It brings together footprint inspection, available-height 3D display, local data import, scoped analysis, and map and data export.
Open US Buildings · Website source
From footprints to LoD2 roof geometry
I am exploring roof reconstruction using NAIP imagery and 3DEP LiDAR. Recent experiments examine canopy contamination, roof-support preservation, and local geometric correction. These are small-scale research results; independent roof-geometry evaluation remains an important next step.
Interactive experiments · Method comparison
Building geometry and energy modeling
During my work with the National Building Energy Model team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, I integrated and standardized building-footprint datasets for AutoBEM and investigated how footprint area and geometry affect simulated energy use. This connects the quality of remote sensing products to their downstream use.
Environmental remote sensing
Earlier work used GRACE and MODIS observations to examine the spatial mismatch between water resources and grain-planting changes in China, and Landsat time series to study fine-scale human disturbance. These projects continue to shape my interest in connecting spatial data to environmental questions.