QGreenland, an open-source mapping tool that aids in the discovery and teaching about Greenland, is now available from the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) and its partners. This free geographic information systems (GIS) tool allows for the exploration of data on Greenland’s ocean, land, ice sheet, biology, communities and more, and can be used by a diverse range of users to examine the data available about Greenland’s landscape, ecosystem and communities. QGreenland is the first GIS data-viewing tool of its kind to focus on Greenland.
“It can be a challenge for educators, researchers and community members to begin to explore Greenland data because it is widely dispersed and can be hard to bring together,” said Twila Moon, principal investigator of the project and research scientist at NSIDC. “The QGreenland team has already done this hard work on behalf of users and the result is a fun and easy-to-use tool for anyone to access data about nearly anything in Greenland from birds and ice sheet changes to roads and community maps.” For example, high-resolution satellite images available on QGreenland can reveal small details about the Greenland Ice Sheet, while free online street maps help to navigate local communities.
