Lab 7 - Challenge: Finding a Dataset for Your Site

Objective: Learn to explore the GEE Data Catalog and select appropriate datasets for your research area.

Introduction

Google Earth Engine provides access to a vast catalog of geospatial datasets. In this challenge lab, you will learn to navigate the GEE Data Catalog, understand dataset characteristics, and select appropriate imagery for your area of interest. This is an essential skill for any remote sensing project.

Challenge Instructions

Your Task:

  1. Choose a location of interest (your hometown, study site, etc.)
  2. Browse the GEE Data Catalog
  3. Find at least 3 different datasets suitable for your location
  4. Load and visualize each dataset in GEE
  5. Document the characteristics of each dataset
  6. Compare and contrast the datasets

Dataset Characteristics to Document

For each of the three datasets you choose, document the following:

  • Spatial Resolution: What is the pixel size? (e.g., 10m, 30m, 500m)
  • Temporal Coverage: What time period does the data cover?
  • Temporal Resolution: How frequently is new data collected? (daily, weekly, 16-day, etc.)
  • Spectral Bands: What bands are available? (RGB, NIR, SWIR, thermal, etc.)
  • Data Provider: Who provides the data? (NASA, ESA, USGS, etc.)
  • Best Use Cases: What is this dataset best suited for?

Suggested Dataset Categories

Consider choosing datasets from different categories to see the variety available:

  • Optical Imagery: Landsat, Sentinel-2, MODIS
  • Radar Imagery: Sentinel-1
  • Climate Data: Temperature, precipitation
  • Elevation Data: SRTM, ASTER DEM
  • Land Cover: MODIS Land Cover, ESA WorldCover
  • Specialized: Nighttime lights, population density, fire data

Code Template

// Define your area of interest
var aoi = ee.Geometry.Point([longitude, latitude]);

// Center the map on your location
Map.centerObject(aoi, 10);

// Dataset 1: [Name of dataset]
// Characteristics: [Spatial resolution, temporal coverage, etc.]
var dataset1 = ee.ImageCollection('DATASET_ID_HERE')
    .filterBounds(aoi)
    .filterDate('START_DATE', 'END_DATE')
    .first();

Map.addLayer(dataset1, {bands: ['B4', 'B3', 'B2'], min: 0, max: 3000}, 'Dataset 1');

// Repeat for Dataset 2 and Dataset 3
// ...

Comparison Questions

After loading all three datasets, answer these questions in your script comments:

  1. Which dataset has the highest spatial resolution? What are the trade-offs?
  2. Which dataset provides the most frequent updates?
  3. Which dataset has the most spectral bands? How might this be useful?
  4. For your chosen location and research question, which dataset would you recommend? Why?

📧 Lab Submission

Submit lab via email.

Subject: Lab 7 - Challenge Finding Dataset - [Your Name]

Submit:

A document containing:

  1. URL to your GEE script with all three datasets loaded and visualized
  2. Screenshots of all three datasets showing your area of interest
  3. Dataset comparison table with characteristics (resolution, coverage, bands, etc.)
  4. Recommendation paragraph explaining which dataset is best for your site and why
  5. Answers to comparison questions above

Total: 50 Points