Forests: A Map of Global Changes

By The Editors

This map — based on data from the NASA-U.S. Geological Survey Landsat 7 satellite — shows the worldwide forest cover, as well as the loss and gain of forest cover occurring over a period of 12 years (2000 – 2012). During this period, 888,000 square miles (2.3 million square kilometers) of forest were lost, and 309,000 square miles (800,000 square kilometers) were gained.

It’s one of the maps resulting from a new study published online in the scientific journal Science on November 14, 2013.  The study is entitled “High-Resolution Global Maps of 21st-Century Forest Cover Change” and involves a team of 15 universities, Google and government researchers.

To view the forest cover maps in Google Earth Engine, visit: http://earthenginepartners.appspot.com/google.com/science-2013-global-forest