GEDI L3: Global 1-km Gridded Canopy Height and Ground Elevation

Version 2 data from the GEDI instrument on the International Space Station provides global 1-km x 1-km gridded metrics for land surfaces between -52 and 52 degrees latitude. The dataset includes mean canopy height, its standard deviation, mean ground elevation, its standard deviation, and laser footprint counts. These metrics are derived from Level 2 waveform profiles and are provided in cloud-optimized GeoTIFF format.

Use Cases

• Estimating forest aboveground biomass based on mean canopy height (RH100).
• Generating digital elevation models using mean ground elevation relative to the WGS84 ellipsoid.
• Assessing habitat structure and biodiversity from canopy height variability.
• Monitoring changes in snow cover and glaciers via ground elevation data.
• Validating and calibrating other satellite-derived terrain and vegetation products.

Strengths

• Data has a global spatial coverage between -52 and 52 degrees latitude.
• Uses Version 2 of the input L2 data, which includes improved geolocation and algorithm selection.
• Cross-platform presence on datagov and nasa_earthdata signals its importance and validation.

Limitations

• Metadata completeness is medium; specific column names, row counts, and file sizes are not provided.
• There is a conflict in the 'last updated' date between sources (2026-04-10 on datagov vs. 2025-07-09 on nasa_earthdata).
• The spatial coverage is limited to latitudes between -52 and 52 degrees, excluding polar regions.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Derived from Level 2 geolocated laser footprint return profile metrics collected by the GEDI instrument onboard the International Space Station.

Freshness

2026-04-10 02:58:02.352589

Geography

Global coverage within -52 and 52 degrees latitude.