UM Directory

I am a Research Scientist at the University of Montana's Numerical Terradynamic Simulation Group (NTSG), where I work on science applications for the SMAP Level-4 Carbon Product and the MODIS and VIIRS sensors. I've developed and published improved, global data records on terrestrial productivity (MODIS MOD17) and evapotranspiration (MODIS MOD16). I lead the development of the open-source, reproducible science curriculum, "Open Climate Science for Agriculture." I am also a NASA-funded Early Career Investigator (Earth Sciences), studying the use of satellite microwave data for monitoring wildfire risk in Western U.S. forests. I'm available as a mentor to Univ. of Montana students in scientific computing, statistical inference, remote sensing, or environmental science.

• Member, NASA Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) Science Team (2024-Present)
• Co-Lead, GPP/NPP Focus Area, Land Product Validation (LPV) subgroup of the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) Working Group on Calibration and Validation (2024-Present)

Education

PhD Natural Resources and Environment and Scientific Computing, University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI), 2019

B.S. Applied Geophysics, Michigan Technological University (Houghton, MI), 2009

Courses Taught

GPHY489/491 - "Programming for GIS"

Teaching Experience

• Certified Instructor, Data Carpentry and Software Carpentry (2015-Present)
• Graduate Student Instructor: "Natural Resource Statistics," University of Michigan (2015-2018)
• Graduate Student Instructor: "Urban Sustainability," University of Michigan (2015-2018)

Projects

Monitoring Forest Fire Risk and Water Status Using Passive Microwave Data

• Received a NASA Early-Career Investigator grant to study how passive microwave data could be used to jointly monitor fire risk and water stress in Western U.S. forests

Developing a NASA-funded Open Science Curriculum

• Leading the development of a computational climate-science curriculum, to teach reproducible science skills
• Taught an open-science workshop in Algiers, Algeria in 2024; probably the first time a NASA workshop has been taught there (see local press)

NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) Level-4 Carbon (L4C) Product

• Leading the periodic calibration and re-processing of the SMAP L4C global, daily carbon budget
• Published a validation of the first dynamic, global model of surface soil organic carbon, using data from SMAP

Continuity of Multi-Decadal Terrestrial Productivity and Transpiration Estimates from MODIS

• Developed improved versions of MODIS MOD16 and MOD17 algorithms using global plant trait databases and eddy-covariance tower fluxes
• Created new VIIRS-based VNP16 and VNP17 products, to ensure the continuity of these terrestrial carbon and water flux estimates
• Published a comprehensive calibration-validation study of MODIS MOD17

Selected Publications

• Endsley, K.A., M. Zhao, J.S. Kimball, T. Albrethsen, S. Devadiga. 2025. "Improved global estimates of terrestrial evapotranspiration using the MODIS and VIIRS sensors." Journal of Hydrometeorology 26(6).
• M. Román, C. Justice, I. Paynter, P.B. Boucher, S. Devadiga, K.A. Endsley, ... 2024. "Continuity between MODIS Collection 6.1 and VIIRS Collection 2 land products." Remote Sensing of Environment 302.
• Endsley, K.A., M. Zhao, J.S. Kimball, S. Devadiga. 2023. "Continuity of global MODIS terrestrial primary productivity estimates in the VIIRS era using model-data fusion." Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences 128(9).
• Watts, J.D., M. Farina, J.S. Kimball, Luke D. Shiferl, Zhihua Liu, ..., K.A. Endsley, ... 2023. "Carbon uptake in Eurasian Boreal forests drives the high-latitude net ecosystem carbon budget." Global Change Biology 29(7).
• Endsley, K.A., J.S. Kimball, R.H. Reichle. 2022. "Soil respiration phenology improves modeled phase of terrestrial net ecosystem exchange in northern hemisphere." Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems 14(2).
• Wurster, P., M.P. Maneta, J.S. Kimball, K.A. Endsley, S. Beguería. 2021. "Monitoring crop status in the Continental United States using the SMAP Level 4 Carbon product." Frontiers in Big Data 3.
• Endsley, K.A., J.S. Kimball, R.H. Reichle, J.D. Watts. 2020. "Satellite monitoring of global surface soil organic carbon dynamics using the SMAP Level 4 Carbon product." Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences 125(12).
• Seymour, E., K.A. Endsley, R. Franklin. 2020. "Differential drivers of cost burden in growing and shrinking cities." Applied Geography 125. 
• Osenga, E.C., J.C. Arnott, K.A. Endsley, J. Katzenberger. 2019. “Bioclimatic and soil moisture monitoring across elevation in a mountain watershed: Opportunities for research and resource management.” Water Resources Research 55(3): 2493-2503.

Publications

See CV for full list.

Professional Experience

• Assistant Research Professor, Department of Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences, University of Montana (2025-Present)
• Research Scientist, Numerical Terradynamic Simulation Group (NTSG), University of Montana (2019-Present)
• Consultant, Aspen Global Change Institute (AGCI), Carbondale, CO (2017-2021)
• Graduate Student Research Assistant, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (2014-2019)
• Research Scientist I, Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI), Ann Arbor, MI (2012-2014)
• Assistant Research Scientist, Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI), Ann Arbor, MI (2010-2012)