+ Visit NASA.gov + Advanced Search   + About the Server   + Animation List   + How to Use the Server   + RSS Feeds   + Podcasts   + Opportunities Previous Animation Next Animation North America and Central America MODIS Land Cover New NASA satellite-generated land cover maps are providing scientists with a detailed picture of the distribution of Earth's ecosystems and land use Scientists can better determine how vegetation is distributed and land is being used around the world with new NASA satellite-generated land-cover maps. These new maps, based on a global digital database of land cover types Earth images that is updated every 16 days, will help scientists better understand the Earth's climate and carbon budget and climate, through closer monitoring of water and land resources, including forested and agricultural areas. These land-coverland cover maps were developed at Boston University in Boston, MA, using data from the Moderate-resolution Imaging -Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument aboard NASA's Terra satellite. The prototype MODIS maps were created with data acquired between July and December 2000; but future maps will utilize one year of data. Advances in remote sensing technology allow MODIS to collect higher-quality data than previous sensors, yielding the most detailed land cover classification maps to date. The new maps are better because the quality of MODIS data is much higher than AVHRR data. They are also more current because the information content of MODIS data allowed scientists to exploit more efficient automated methods for categorizing land cover than was were previously possible, reducing the time to generate maps from months or years to about one week. Each MODIS land-coverland cover map contains 17 different land cover types, differentiating among eleven natural vegetation types such as deciduous and evergreen forests, savannas, grasslands, permanent wetlands and shrublands. Agricultural land use , as well as, several categories of land surfaces with little or no plant cover -- such as bare ground, urban areas and permanent snow and ice -- are also depicted in the maps.    This animation of North and Central America shows each of the 17 MODIS landcover classes individually and then the series repeats with the classes appearing together. Duration: 31.0 seconds Available formats:   320x240 (30 fps) MPEG-1   4 MB   160x80       PNG           21 KB   80x40         PNG           6 KB   320x240     JPEG         13 KB   720x480 (29.97 fps) DV             195 MB   320x240 (30 fps) X-FLV       1 MB How to play our movies    MODIS 17 class algorithm Available formats:   720 x 486         TIFF   518 KB   320 x 216         JPEG     17 KB    MODIS Landcover classification for the USA Available formats:   720 x 486         TIFF   515 KB   320 x 216         JPEG     18 KB    Legend showing the colors for the different types of Landcover Available formats:   576 x 461         TIFF   126 KB   320 x 256         JPEG     13 KB    Video slate image reads "MODIS Landcover Product: North and Central America". Available formats:   720 x 528         JPEG   121 KB   320 x 234         PNG     284 KB Animation Number: 2265 Completed: 2001-11-15 Animator: Lori Perkins (NASA/GSFC) (Lead) Scientists: Mark Friedl (Boston University)   John Hodges (Boston University) Platform/Sensor/Data Set: Terra/MODIS (2001/1/1 - 2001/7/1) Video: SVS2001-0022 * Keywords: DLESE >> Agricultural science SVS >> Closed Shrublands SVS >> Croplands SVS >> Deciduous Broadleaf Forest SVS >> Deciduous Needleaf Forest SVS >> Evergreen Broadleaf Forest SVS >> Evergreen Needleaf Forest DLESE >> Forestry SVS >> Grasslands DLESE >> Human geography SVS >> Mixed Forest SVS >> Natural Vegetation SVS >> Open Shrublands SVS >> Permanent Wetlands DLESE >> Physical geography SVS >> Savannas SVS >> Snow and Ice SVS >> Sparsely Vegetated SVS >> Urban SVS >> Woody Savannas More Information on this topic available at: /stories/MODIS_landcover_20011019/index.html     Please give credit for this item to: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio *Please note: the SVS does not fulfill requests for copies of the tapes in our library. On some of our animation pages, there is a direct link to a video distribution service from which tapes, handled by the Public Affairs Office (PAO)/Goddard TV, including some of our animations may be ordered. General information on this service can be found here. Back to Top + Privacy Policy and Important Notices + Reproduction Guidelines NASA Official: Content Contact: Curator: