Summary

Description	The Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) uses laser pulses to give a view of the 3D structure of the Earth. GEDI’s precise measurements of the height and vertical structure of forest canopy, along with the surface elevation, will greatly advance our ability to characterize important carbon and water cycling processes, biodiversity, and habitat. The mission is led by the University of Maryland, College Park, and the instrument was built and tested at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. GEDI observes nearly all tropical and temperate forests using a self-contained laser altimeter on the International Space Station. GEDI has the highest resolution and densest sampling of any lidar ever put in orbit. This has required a number of innovative technologies to be developed at NASA Goddard. GEDI has three lasers that produce 8 parallel tracks of observations. Each laser fires 242 times per second and illuminates a 25-meter footprint on the surface over which 3D structure is measured
Date	2018-10-09
Source	images.nasa.gov

Licensing

Public Domain (US Government Work)