Pre-harvest Forest Biomass and Timber Inventory in NW Mato Grosso, Brazil

Tree and liana biomass data were collected from a 3500-hectare logging concession in northwest Mato Grosso, Brazil, as part of the LBA. Over 20,000 trees were sampled across commercial and scientific inventories. NASA produced this dataset in 2003 to study the relationship between ground inventories and satellite imagery for forest assessment.

Use Cases

• Comparing aboveground biomass estimates from commercial timber inventories (trees >=45 cm DBH) with scientific inventories (all trees and palms >=10 cm DBH).
• Analyzing the relationship between topographic indices derived from ASTER DEMs and timber species distribution.
• Assessing the utility of LANDSAT TM bands for distinguishing upland versus lowland forest areas and timber density.
• Modeling areas excluded from logging under Reduced Impact Logging criteria using stream networks and buffer zones.
• Validating satellite-based biomass predictions with ground-truthed measurements of tree diameter and geolocation.

Strengths

• Contains ground measurements for over 20,000 individually sampled and georeferenced trees.
• Integrates multiple data layers: tree inventories, ASTER 30m DEM, LANDSAT TM imagery, and derived topographic indices.
• Provides specific biomass density figures (e.g., 33 Mg ha⁻¹ upland vs. 29 Mg ha⁻¹ lowland) from a large study area (3500 ha).

Limitations

• Exact row count, column names, and dataset size are not provided by any source.
• Conflicting last updated dates: Data.gov lists 2026-03-13 (likely a metadata error), while NASA Earthdata lists the original 2003 date.
• The study notes LANDSAT imagery had limited utility for assessing commercial timber distribution at a sub-hectare scale.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), LBA-ECO project.

Collection Method

Ground-based commercial and scientific tree inventories combined with regional LANDSAT TM and ASTER satellite imagery and DEM analysis.

Time Range

2003

Freshness

2003-10-14 23:59:59.999000

Geography

A logging concession in northwest Mato Grosso, Brazil, Amazonia.