Articles & Stories

Dreams Become Reality for NASA High School Intern

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As scientists at the 2017 American Geophysical Union (AGU) Conference convened to listen to Liza Goldberg’s presentation about the online portal she developed for NASA to monitor global mangrove forest vulnerability and loss, they recognized its immediate global utility. In further learning about her background, these seasoned professionals were amazed that Goldberg is a NASA high school intern who’s conducting graduate level science research.

Goldberg’s passion and understanding for environmental science caught the attention of NASA scientists at the 61st Baltimore Science Fair in 2016, when she presented her work on climate change impacts on maple seedlings – a study she had designed and conducted for two years in her backyard. Her work resulted in continued conversations and an eventual internship with David Lagomasino and Lola Fatoyinbo, NASA remote sensing experts with the NASA Goddard Biospheric Sciences Lab in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Liza Goldberg gives presentation on mangrove platform to SCO and others at the NSSTC
Liza Goldberg gives a presentation during her visit with the SERVIR SCO.  

“We had Liza ease into the world of remote sensing by reading through some of our research papers and helping us with land cover validation. She dove right in and went above and beyond our expectations. She was so motivated, and we soon realized that she needed to start working on her own project,” said Lagomasino.

Both Lagomasino and Fatoyinbo study coastal ecosystems, including mangroves – one of the most valuable natural resources. Mangroves are an endangered ecosystem that provide a nursery for a diversity of creatures; protect coastal lines from typhoons and hurricanes; and are frequently used to build homes, bridges, and furniture.

At the start of Goldberg’s internship in 2016, one of the worst mangrove forest diebacks in recorded history took place in Australia’s Gulf of Carpentaria. There were no prior indications that this dieback would occur at the time, and no understanding as to why it happened. The phenomenon concerned and inspired her to develop solutions to help protect mangroves.

Despite finding herself new to the world of coding and remote sensing – scanning of the Earth by satellite – Goldberg quickly found ways to contribute to the field. She saw an opportunity to bring the science of mangrove forest research to coastal communities worldwide by developing a global platform that monitors and predicts mangrove vulnerability and loss. Her ambitions, though, go beyond this achievement. Goldberg’s long-term goal is to make this platform available to coastal communities and decision-makers who would benefit the most from the technology.

“Liza brought a fresh eye to our work – she reminded me and probably many on our team why we all got into our field of research in the first place – to make a difference on the ground using the satellite data,” said Fatoyinbo.

Her motivation to bridge science and community needs led Goldberg to the SERVIR Science Coordination Office (SCO) at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. SERVIR helps developing countries use satellite data to address critical challenges in food security, water resources, weather and climate, land use, and natural disasters. A partnership of NASA, USAID, and leading technical organizations, SERVIR develops innovative solutions to improve livelihoods and foster self-reliance in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.

Recognizing the overlap between SERVIR’s mission and her project goals, Goldberg contacted Dan Irwin, Global Program Manager of SERVIR, to invite him to her first AGU presentation on the mangrove-monitoring platform.

Impressed with the platform’s immediate global application, Irwin took the next steps to introduce Goldberg and her project to his team, and to the SERVIR-Eastern & Southern Africa hub at the Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD) in Nairobi, Kenya.

“It’ll be interesting to see how we can link our satellite analysis with the ideas of local citizens, which is a critical aspect of this project that needs to be addressed,” said Goldberg. “We’re not going to continue making strides in the field unless we start interacting with the local people.”

This summer, Goldberg spent seven days with the NASA SERVIR SCO to discuss potential uses of her tools with SERVIR scientists. A major outcome of these meetings included the coordination of her research activities with East African end users. This will allow for Goldberg to start co-developing her tools and incorporate end user feedback, enabling a more sustainable product.

RCMRD’s Science and Data Lead, Anastasia Wahome, noted, “Liza’s work is really commendable. We did a mapping of mangroves along the coastlines of Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and Madagascar in 2014-2015, and this is, therefore, a great chance to compare notes on methodologies and outputs and also analyze areas of collaboration. I especially like her trend analysis of the mangrove forests and the risk factors, which we did not undertake. We will definitely be sharing this with our stakeholders in our region.”

“It has been great to go from dreams and goals to making them reality,” said Goldberg. The young scientist intends to continue her internship with NASA Goddard at least through the end of her high school career.

As career advice to high school students and others, she concluded, “When first starting, don’t be intimidated by your lack of knowledge in a subject – just take one step at a time.” Goldberg encourages individuals to pursue their passions and know that it doesn’t necessarily take a doctorate degree to become at least knowledgeable and do research.