Geoskill: Landcover Download

Download and subset global land cover data from ESA WorldCover, FROM-GLC, and GlobeLand30 by region and year with STAC support.

Global Land Cover Downloader

A powerful tool for downloading global land cover data from multiple sources.

Features

• Multi-Dataset Support: ESA WorldCover (10m), FROM-GLC (30m), GlobeLand30 (30m)
• STAC Integration: Uses Planetary Computer STAC API for ESA WorldCover
• Regional Download: Support bbox for area-of-interest selection
• Year Selection: Choose data year for temporal analysis
• Progress Tracking: Visual progress bar with ETA
• Safe Downloads: .part file pattern prevents incomplete downloads
• No API Keys: All data sources are public and free

Usage

Basic Search

bash

# Search ESA WorldCover tiles for a region
python landcover-download.py \
    --dataset worldcover \
    --bbox 116.0 39.0 117.0 40.0

Download Data

bash

# Download WorldCover tiles
python landcover-download.py \
    --dataset worldcover \
    --bbox 116.0 39.0 117.0 40.0 \
    --year 2021 \
    --download \
    --output-dir ./landcover_data

List Available Datasets

bash

python landcover-download.py --list-datasets

List Classification Values

bash

python landcover-download.py --list-classes

Datasets

ESA WorldCover (Default)

• Resolution: 10m
• Years: 2020, 2021
• Source: Planetary Computer STAC
• Assets: map (classification), input_data

FROM-GLC

• Resolution: 30m
• Years: 2010, 2015, 2017
• Source: Tsinghua University

GlobeLand30

• Resolution: 30m
• Years: 2000, 2010, 2020
• Source: National Geomatics Center of China

WorldCover Classification Values

Code	Class
10	Tree cover
20	Shrubland
30	Grassland
40	Cropland
50	Built-up
60	Bare / sparse vegetation
70	Snow and ice
80	Permanent water bodies
90	Herbaceous wetland
95	Mangroves
100	Moss and lichen

CLI Options

text

--dataset {worldcover,from-glc,globeland30}
                      Dataset to download (default: worldcover)
--bbox MIN_LON MIN_LAT MAX_LON MAX_LAT
                      Geographic extent in WGS84
--year YEAR           Data year (default: latest available)
--limit LIMIT         Max tiles to return (default 50)
--assets ASSETS [ASSETS ...]
                      Assets to download (default: map for worldcover)
--download            Trigger actual download (default: search only)
--output-dir DIR      Download directory (default ./landcover_data)
--output-format {text,json}
                      Output format
--no-progress         Disable visual progress bar
--download-timeout SEC
                      Per-asset download timeout in seconds (default 600)
--list-datasets       List all available datasets and exit
--list-classes        List land cover classification values (WorldCover)
--quiet               Suppress progress + privacy notice

Environment Variables

• LANDCOVER_DOWNLOAD_QUIET=1: Suppress progress and privacy notices
• LANDCOVER_DOWNLOAD_USE_PROXY=1: Use system proxy settings

License

MIT-0. Land cover data © respective providers.

Data Sources

• ESA WorldCover: Provided by ESA under Creative Commons license
• FROM-GLC: Provided by Tsinghua University
• GlobeLand30: Provided by National Geomatics Center of China