Where the data comes from
The observations come from iNaturalist. Each environmental column is sampled from Google Earth Engine at the coordinate of the observation, on the date of the observation.
| Column | Source |
|---|---|
ndvi | Sentinel-2 (COPERNICUS/S2_SR_HARMONIZED) |
soil_moisture | ERA5-Land daily |
prcp_d0..d6 | CHIRPS daily rainfall |
tmax_d0..d6, tmin_d0..d6 | ERA5-Land daily |
wind_u, wind_v | ERA5-Land 10 m wind |
land_cover | ESA WorldCover |
elevation, slope, aspect | SRTM |
| Solar exposure, wind exposure, wetness index | Derived from the terrain, plus MERIT Hydro |
The app stores the wind as vector components and not as a bearing. Directions are circular: the average of 350° and 10° is 180°, which points in exactly the wrong direction.
What a sampled value means
The pipeline reads the raster cell that contains the point. It does not interpolate between cells, and it does not use a regional mean.
The native resolutions run from 10 m to approximately 10 km. Read Resolution and scale for what that does to a value.
Caution A record whose coordinates are obscured or coarse is flagged. The terrain that is sampled at an obscured point describes a place where the observation was not.
Sharing and saving
Share builds a link that reproduces the current view. The map position, the filters, the coloring, the heatmap and the date window all travel with it.
From the same menu you can produce a QR code, or share to X, Bluesky, Facebook, Reddit, email or SMS. You can also copy an iframe snippet that embeds the view without the site header.
The app generates the QR code in the browser. The link therefore never reaches a third party.
Save image exports a chart as a PNG or an SVG. It exports the map as a PNG, with the basemap composited into it.
Accounts are optional. When you are signed out, everything persists in this browser. When you sign in, your settings and your saved charts follow you across devices.
The first sign-in on a device merges your local work into your account. It does not overwrite it, so work that you did before you made the account is not lost.
Terms
Each source sets its own terms. Read them before you republish anything.
- iNaturalist terms of use — each observation also carries its own licence.
- The Earth Engine data catalogue — each dataset page names the terms of that dataset.
- Nexstrata privacy policy and terms.