GEDI RH98: Global Forest Canopy Height Map for 2019

Global canopy top height (RH98) estimates derived from GEDI LIDAR waveforms between 51.6° N and S. The dataset provides both sparse footprint-level predictions and a dense 0.5-degree resolution raster map, based on data from April to July 2019. It is intended for research in forestry, ecology, and carbon cycle modeling.

Use Cases

• Forest biomass and carbon stock modeling based on canopy height estimates.
• Validation of satellite-derived vegetation structure products using LIDAR footprint data.
• Analysis of global forest structure patterns from the aggregated 0.5-degree raster map.
• Ecological habitat assessment leveraging the spatial distribution of canopy height.

Strengths

• Provides a global spatial coverage between 51.6° N and S, a specific geographic scope.
• Includes both high-resolution LIDAR waveform-derived predictions and an aggregated raster product at 0.5-degree resolution.
• Data is associated with a peer-reviewed research publication in Remote Sensing of Environment, indicating academic rigor.

Limitations

• Temporal coverage is limited to a four-month period (April-July 2019), not a full year.
• Key metadata such as exact row count, file size, and specific column names are not provided in the available sources.
• The dataset's freshness is unclear as the last update date is not specified across platforms.

Provenance

Source

GEDI L1B Version 1 waveforms processed by researchers at ETH Zurich.

Collection Method

Canopy top height (RH98) estimated from LIDAR waveforms using deep ensemble regression models, with predictions filtered and aggregated.

Time Range

April 2019 - July 2019

Geography

Global land area between 51.6° North and 51.6° South latitude.