Tracking global croplands and how they are changing is a massive, pressing and complex undertaking made possible by advances in remote sensing and computing.
Wisconsin's agricultural bounty is possible thanks in part to the state's voluminous supply of freshwater. At the same time, the use of this resource to grow crops and nourish livestock poses risks to the quality of these waters.
Sometimes pollution is dramatic, like aerial footage of a 2011 coal ash pond collapse that sent toxic contents onto the beach and into Lake Michigan in Oak Creek, just south of Milwaukee.
In a world with a changing climate, just how accurate are hardiness zone maps, and how do their makers continue to ensure these tools are as useful as possible?
