Green Planet

Explore views of Earth's changing vegetation seen from space.

This visualization shows vegetation changes from Feb. 2000 through Dec. 2012. Dark green areas indicate high plant growth; tan areas low or none.

Greenness levels start to fade during fall in the Northern Hemisphere as temperatures cool and the days grow shorter.

In winter, vegetation at high latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere goes dormant. The black areas in the polar region above indicate no data.

Plant life starts to bloom during spring in the Northern Hemisphere as temperatures warm and the days grow longer.

Greenness levels peak in the Northern Hemisphere during summer, when the highest rates of plant growth are observed.