El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico Canopy Change Up Close (2017-2018)
- Written by:
- Alex Kekesi and
- Ellen T. Gray
- Scientific consulting by:
- Doug C. Morton
- Produced by:
- Matthew Radcliff
- View full credits
Sample composite that shows a split screen of 2017 and 2018 lidar data over El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico. As the animation plays, one can see a distinct difference between the fullness of the 2017 forest canopy versus the much sparser 2018 canopy. This difference is most noticable around rivers and streams where the neighboring forest canopy was stripped away by Hurricane Maria exposing much more of the water banks.
The extensive damage to Puerto Rico's forests had far-reaching effects, Morton said. Fallen trees that no longer stabilize soil on slopes with their roots as well as downed branches can contribute to landslides and debris flows, increased erosion, and poor water quality in streams and rivers where sediments build up.
Credits
Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio
Data visualizers
- Alex Kekesi (GST) [Lead]
- Cindy Starr (GST)
- Greg Shirah (NASA/GSFC)
- Horace Mitchell (NASA/GSFC)
Writer
- Ellen T. Gray (NASA/HQ) [Lead]
Scientist
- Doug C. Morton (NASA/GSFC) [Lead]
Producer
- Matthew Radcliff (KBRwyle) [Lead]
Technical support
- Ian Jones (ADNET)
- Laurence Schuler (ADNET)
Data provider
- Hyeungu Choi (GST)
Series
This visualization can be found in the following series:Datasets used in this visualization
Airplane LiDAR (A.K.A. LiDAR 3D point cloud) (Collected with the G-LiHT sensor)
Note: While we identify the data sets used in these visualizations, we do not store any further details nor the data sets themselves on our site.
Related pages
NASA Surveys Hurricane Damage to Puerto Rico's Forests (Data Viz Version)
July 29, 2019, 2:30 p.m.
Read moreIn September 2017, Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico head-on as a Category 4 storm with winds topping 155 miles per hour. The storm damaged homes, flooded towns, devastated the island s Lidar, Hyperspectral, and Thermal Imager (G-LiHT) is a portable instrument that maps forest health and structure from a small airplane resulting in detailed 3-D views of the forest. G-LiHT sends out 600,000 laser pulses every second mapping leaves and branches, rocks and streams. Almost 60% of the canopy trees lost branches, snapped in half, or were uprooted. Trees with wide, spreading crowns were reduced to a slender main trunk. Forests in Puerto Rico are now one-third shorter on average, after Hurricane Maria. The disturbances affected the whole ecosystem, from soils and streams to birds and frogs. G-LiHT data will help scientists understand how forests and wildlife respond to future changes.
3-D Views of Puerto Rico's Forests After Hurricane Maria
Dec. 10, 2018, 4:45 a.m.
Read moreIn September 2017, Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico head-on as a Category 4 storm with winds topping 155 miles per hour. The storm damaged homes, flooded towns, devastated the island To get a detailed look at vegetation and land cover, NASA uses an airborne instrument called Goddard’s Lidar, Hyperspectral and Thermal Airborne Imager, or G-LiHT. From the belly of a small aircraft flying one thousand feet above the trees, G-LiHT collects multiple measurements of forests, including high-resolution photographs, surface temperatures and the heights and structure of the vegetation. Watch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available.Music: Letting the Past Go, by Ben Hales [PRS], Matt Hales [PRS]
El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico Canopy Change Nadir View (2017-2018)
Dec. 10, 2018, 7:01 a.m.
Read moreIn September 2017, Hurricane Maria s forests had far-reaching effects, Morton said. Fallen trees that no longer stabilize soil on slopes with their roots as well as downed branches can contribute to landslides and debris flows, increased erosion, and poor water quality in streams and rivers where sediments build up. Animation that does of a low fly over of El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico. The entire animation is split screen showing the 2017 data on top and 2018 on bottom. Notice the dense lush forest canopy in 2017 and how it covers and shades much of the forest floor. However, in 2018, after Maria devastated the forest in late 2017, the tree canopy has been greatly thinned exposing much more of the forest floor. 2017 El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico. Notice the dense forest coverage before Hurricane Maria struck six months later. 2018 El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico. Notice the exposed forest floor after Hurricane Maria hit in late 2017.
El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico Canopy Change from Afar (2017-2018)
Dec. 10, 2018, 7 a.m.
Read moreIn September 2017, Hurricane Maria s forests had far-reaching effects, Morton said. Fallen trees that no longer stabilize soil on slopes with their roots as well as downed branches can contribute to landslides and debris flows, increased erosion, and poor water quality in streams and rivers where sediments build up. Sample Composite that split screens the lidar swath over the El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico. During the split screen, 2017 data is on the upper left and 2018 data on the bottom right. As the camera moves northwest, the viewer can see patches of ground becoming visible in the 2018 data. This is due to the vast numbers of trees that were stripped or fell during Hurricane Maria in September 2017. 2017 El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico six months before Maria. 2018 El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico after Maria hit in late 2017.