Hambach open-pit mine
Europe's largest lignite pit and the forest beside it.
1,136.5 hectares changed · Before: 1 May 2017 – 31 Aug 2017 · After: 1 May 2023 – 31 Aug 2023 · 50.900, 6.500
BEFORE 2017-08
AFTER 2023-08
Drag to compare
1,136.5 haarea changed
196areas flagged
6,416 haarea examined
2satellites used
What changed, by type
498.0 haunclassified
324.8 haNew water / flooding
303.1 haNew construction / earthworks
10.6 haVegetation cleared
Land changes in both directions at once. SCOPE reports every type it measured, not only the one that makes the better headline.
What SCOPE found
New construction / earthworks — 48.1 ha
2.6 km east · 84% sure
2.6 km east · 84% sure
New water / flooding — 43.6 ha
3.5 km south-east · 76% sure
3.5 km south-east · 76% sure
New construction / earthworks — 21.4 ha
3.3 km north-east · 79% sure
3.3 km north-east · 79% sure
New construction / earthworks — 19.5 ha
3.0 km east · 80% sure
3.0 km east · 80% sure
New construction / earthworks — 15.5 ha
2.9 km north · 76% sure
2.9 km north · 76% sure
How sure is this?
The strongest area (#1) has 84% confidence. It appears in 6 of 6 later clear images, so it is not a one-day artefact. Radar could not confirm or rule them out (normal for vegetation changes), so the result rests on repeated clear optical views and the seasonal comparison. Only 0% of the area had clear optical views, so some change may be hidden by cloud. Note: Optical imagery was unusable (cloud); results rely on Sentinel-1 radar only. Confidence measures how strong the evidence for real surface change is; it does not identify the cause or who did it.
How it was measured
SCOPE used Sentinel-2 optical imagery at 10 m, cloud-masked and combined over each
period, Sentinel-1 radar as an independent check
.
The analysis took 21 seconds.
Now try it on a place you know
If SCOPE is right about somewhere you know well, you can trust it somewhere you do not. 5 scans a day, free, no card.
Scan your own place