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IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing (TGRS) is a peer-reviewed journal of the IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society (GRSS) for technical papers on sensing the land, oceans, atmosphere and space. This page sets out its scope, review model, submission route and 2026 cost structure, as stated on the society’s own pages (checked 2026-11-08), so that authors, research offices and funders’ finance staff can plan a submission.
What TGRS is
TGRS publishes advances in sensing instruments and techniques used for the acquisition of geoscientific information, along with the processing, enhancing and interpretation of remote sensing data. Its author information describes the scope as theory, concepts and techniques of science and engineering as applied to sensing the land, oceans, atmosphere and space, and the processing, interpretation and dissemination of this information. For background on the field itself, see what remote sensing is.
Who runs it and what it covers
The journal is published under the IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society. Its editorial board page lists editors by topic area, including synthetic aperture radar (SAR), hyperspectral imaging, microwave radiometry, LiDAR and GNSS reflectometry (GNSS-R). Submissions are expected to be technical papers with novel methodological advances and significant research; where a paper reports experimental data, the data must be complete, with sufficient description of the apparatus, methods and conditions.
How to submit
- Prepare the manuscript as a PDF in IEEE standard format (double column, single spaced). Keywords follow the IEEE controlled vocabulary; see IEEE keywords.
- Submit electronically through the journal’s submission system, ieee.atyponrex.com/journal/tgrs. The author information states that no other manner of submission is accepted.
- At submission, choose Open Access or Traditional publication (see the fees section below).
- By submitting, the author certifies that the work is not published, accepted or under consideration elsewhere.
- Direct questions about submission to the editorial office address given on the author information page.
Review process
Each paper is reviewed by at least two independent reviewers, and the review is single-blind (reviewers know the authors’ identities; authors do not know the reviewers’). Papers are screened for plagiarism before acceptance. For how IEEE describes peer review more broadly, see is IEEE peer reviewed.
Fees and open access (2026)
TGRS is a hybrid journal: authors choose, at submission, between Open Access (the article is unrestricted on IEEE Xplore and an article processing charge is payable if the paper is accepted) and Traditional publication (available to subscribers and purchasers, with no open-access payment). Separate page charges can apply in either case. The figures below are those stated on the GRSS author page for papers submitted in 2026.
| Charge | Amount stated | Conditions stated |
|---|---|---|
| Open Access article processing charge | US$2,800 | Articles submitted in 2026; payable only if accepted. IEEE Members 5% off, IEEE Society Members 20% off (not combinable); students not eligible; corresponding authors in World Bank low-income countries may be eligible for discounts. |
| Mandatory overlength page charge | US$230 per page (US$200 for GRS Society members) | Papers submitted after 1 January 2026: applies beyond ten printed pages (from page 11). Earlier submissions: beyond six pages. Separate from open-access charges. |
| Optional sustaining page charge | US$110 per printed page | For the first 11 pages; requested only after a favorable technical review. |
The overlength threshold is the figure most likely to change a budget: the same manuscript can be charged differently depending on the date it was submitted.
Strengths and limits
- Specialist scope. The editor list is organised by sensing modality, so a paper on SAR, hyperspectral, LiDAR or GNSS-R sits within named editorial expertise.
- Hybrid choice. Authors without open-access funding can publish Traditionally with no article processing charge.
- Methodological bar. The author information asks for novel methodological advances and complete experimental description, so purely applied or incremental case studies may fit a sibling journal better.
- Length cost. Papers longer than ten printed pages carry a mandatory per-page charge.
Alternatives within the same society
GRSS lists several other titles on its publications page. They differ in format and access model rather than in quality ranking.
| Title | What the GRSS publications page says |
|---|---|
| IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Letters (GRSL) | Monthly; short papers of up to five pages |
| IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing (JSTARS) | Open access |
| IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Magazine (GRSM) | Quarterly magazine |
| GRSS section of IEEE Access | Fully open access, rapid review (see IEEE Access journal guide) |
The society also lists the IEEE Journal on Miniaturization for Air and Space Systems and the IEEE Transactions on Radar Systems.
FAQ
Who publishes IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing?
It is a journal of the IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society (GRSS), published through IEEE.
Is TGRS open access?
It is a hybrid journal. Authors choose Open Access (US$2,800 article processing charge for 2026 submissions, payable only on acceptance) or Traditional publication with no open-access payment.
How does peer review work at TGRS?
At least two independent reviewers assess each paper under a single-blind model, with plagiarism screening before acceptance.
How long can a TGRS paper be before extra charges apply?
For papers submitted after 1 January 2026, a mandatory overlength charge applies from the eleventh printed page. For earlier submissions it applied beyond six pages.
Where do I submit?
Only through the journal’s online submission system at ieee.atyponrex.com/journal/tgrs.
Sources
- IEEE GRSS, TGRS information for authors, read 2026-11-08.
- IEEE GRSS, Publications, read 2026-11-08.
