A British satellite that will map the world’s forests in 3D to keep track of climate change will be launched into space next week.
Tree coverage plays an important role in tracking climate change, with deforestation activities releasing stored carbon dioxide into the atmosphere while fresh forest growth captures atmospheric CO2.
Data from the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii recently showed that atmospheric CO2 levels surged faster than expected in 2024 because of deforestation activities and a series of unprecedented wildfires.
The satellite, called Biomass, will create a 3D map of tropical forests after 17 months, then new (non-3D) maps every nine months for the rest of its five-year mission. It is hoped the data will provide unique insights normally hidden from human sight because of the difficulty in accessing dense and sometimes remote forest environments.
It will also penetrate cloud cover and measure forest biomass more accurately than any current technology, which only see the top...