SLICER: Lidar Canopy Profiles for Boreal Forest Study

Scanning Lidar Imager of Canopies by Echo Recovery (SLICER) Level-3 data were collected during the BOReal Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study (BOREAS) in July 1996. The dataset contains binary files for each flight line, with a record per laser shot consisting of 13 parameters and a 600-byte waveform of backscatter energy. Data cover Tower Flux sites and transects in the Southern and Northern Study Areas, acquired simultaneously with ASAS hyperspectral imagery.

Use Cases

• Modeling forest canopy height and structure based on lidar waveform data.
• Analyzing boreal forest biomass and its spatial distribution from geospatial point clouds.
• Correlating lidar-derived canopy metrics with simultaneous hyperspectral imagery for ecological studies.
• Studying topographic effects on vegetation within the BOREAS tower flux site network.

Strengths

• Data were collected simultaneously with Advanced Solid-State Array Spectroradiometer (ASAS) hyperspectral images, enabling multi-sensor analysis.
• Coverage includes a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 10 flight lines per tower site across the BOREAS study areas.
• Each laser shot record contains 13 specific parameters in addition to the raw 600-byte waveform.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable across all sources.
• The dataset's temporal coverage is limited to 5 days in July 1996, providing only a snapshot.
• Sources conflict on the last update date, with one source listing 2026-03-13 and another listing 1996-07-30.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Acquired via airborne Scanning Lidar Imager of Canopies by Echo Recovery (SLICER) instrument.

Time Range

18-30 July 1996

Freshness

1996-07-30

Geography

BOREAS Southern and Northern Study Areas (SSA and NSA) and transects between them.