1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:01,430


2
00:00:01,450 --> 00:00:09,020
Hurricane Maria transformed the lush rainforests of Puerto Rico

3
00:00:09,040 --> 00:00:16,920
leaving lots of openings in the forest canopy.

4
00:00:16,940 --> 00:00:22,920
NASA scientists studied the island’s forests before and after the storm.

5
00:00:22,940 --> 00:00:25,080


6
00:00:25,100 --> 00:00:29,980
Goddard’s Lidar, Hyperspectral, and Thermal imager is a portable instrument

7
00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:34,220
that maps forest health and structure from a small airplane

8
00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:41,180
resulting in detailed 3-D views of the forest.

9
00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:47,820
G-LiHT sends out 600,000 laser pulses every second,

10
00:00:47,840 --> 00:00:52,980
mapping leaves and branches, rocks and streams.

11
00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:55,480


12
00:00:55,500 --> 00:01:01,080
Almost 60% of the canopy trees lost branches, snapped in half, or were uprooted.

13
00:01:01,100 --> 00:01:02,540


14
00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:09,130
Trees with wide, spreading crowns were reduced to a slender main trunk.

15
00:01:09,150 --> 00:01:14,650
Forests in Puerto Rico are now one-third shorter, on average, after Hurricane Maria.

16
00:01:14,670 --> 00:01:16,720


17
00:01:16,740 --> 00:01:23,180
The disturbances affected the whole ecosystem, from soils and streams to birds and frogs.

18
00:01:23,200 --> 00:01:24,980


19
00:01:25,000 --> 00:01:33,120
G-LiHT data will help scientists understand how forests and wildlife respond to future changes.

20
00:01:33,140 --> 00:01:38,620
[beeping]

21
00:01:38,640 --> 00:01:39,991