Exploring massive forestry open data with a web browser

Abstract

Forest Explorer is a web application for easy browsing the contents of Iberian forest inventories and land cover maps. It exploits a source of Linked Open Data that was created in the European project Cross-Forest from the original sources. The application is available at https://forestexplorer.gsic.uva.es/ and can be accessed through a simple web browser in desktop computers, tablets, and mobile devices. The user interface hides the complexity of the underlying technologies, offering an interactive map for navigating the area of interest and presenting forestry data with the right level of detail. The application allows a professional usage, as well as a more casual one for scientific disseminators, data scientists, or citizens. Until now 8900 users have employed Forest Explorer and the application has appeared multiple times in media.