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Forests are like giant carbon vaults,

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stowing away massive amounts of carbon in their

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trunks, branches, leaves, and roots.

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NASA's GEDI instrument, mounted on the International Space Station,

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helps map forests in 3D,

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tracking tree canopy height, forest structure, and surface elevation.

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GEDI measures forest biomass,

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the total mass of all living trees and plants in the forest,

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and the carbon stored within.

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However, GEDI needs a little help.

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Because the Space Station doesn't orbit over high latitudes,

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GEDI can't measure boreal forest regions.

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That's where the ICESat-2 satellite steps in.

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It has a different orbit, so it can make measurements

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of boreal forests near Earth's polar regions.

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Together, GEDI and ICESat-2
give us the most complete

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view yet of Earth's forests

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and how much carbon they contain.

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Now we can track where carbon is being lost or gained as forests change.

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With GEDI and ICESat-2,

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we can see the future of our planet's carbon balance

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and how it changes over time.