NASA scientists have mapped how green the Earth is. Their map shows how much vegetation covers the planet’s surface, and how much has disappeared in recent years due to wildfires, logging and crop failures.
The map also gives the first global glimpse of how much carbon these environmental disturbances release into the atmosphere. By comparing this figure with the carbon released from the fossil fuels we burn, scientists will be able to fine-tune their estimates of how human activity is driving global warming.
Vast areas of the Earth, particularly in the tropics and tundra, are too inaccessible to be mapped…
