Research · 2026-10-22

Not Just Trees: How Scientists Mapped Forest Types Around the World

Google DeepMind has created a global map on which every 10-by-10-meter plot of land is labeled as a specific type of forest.

✨ What the researchers did

Google DeepMind has published a map showing forest types across the entire planet. Every 10-by-10-meter plot of land has been assigned its own category.

Such detail makes it possible to see a forest not just as a green patch, but as distinct natural ecosystems with different characteristics.

📌 Why it matters

As the headline suggests, the issue is not only the number of trees in an area. For scientists and those who work on nature protection, it is important to know which specific forests grow in a particular place, because this determines how they respond to climate change, logging, or fires.

Sources: 🔗 Google DeepMind Blog