This map displays data created by a team of researchers from SkyTruth, Duke University, and Appalachian Voices. This map depicts locations where surface coal mining was identified as actively occurring during the indicated years. The mining footprints displayed in this map were created by cleaning and analyzing over 10,000 Landsat satellite images using Google Earth Engine. The paper detailing the methods by which the data were created can be accessed at http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0197758 and the mining data here.

Move around the map by click-dragging. Use the and icons or your mouse's scrolling wheel to zoom in and out on the map.

Watch a timeline of active mining from 1985 throuth 2015 by clicking    Play Timeline. This works at any location or scrolling level.

Cities and Towns can be shown/hidden by toggling the Labels On/Off switch.

County Borders are shown by default, but can be removed by toggling the County Borders On/Off switch.

SkyTruth’s composite images combine the best satellite photos for each year into a single layer, and are available for each year from 1985 through 2015. Simply toggle the SkyTruth Composite On/Off switch, then use the Composite Year slider to select the year.

You can see a breakdown of mining -- by year and as a percentage of the total selected area -- for virtually any area.

• By County: When County Borders are shown, scroll over a county to see its name in the upper left corner of the map, then click anywhere in the county for statistics.
• By Your own Area of Interest (AOI): In the upper right corner you'll see a and . Click one, then draw your own AOI.
  For the rectangle: Left-click on the map where you want to start your area, drag your mouse until the rectangle is complete, and release the left-click.
  For the polygon: Click on different points on the map to create your area; complete by re-clicking on the starting point.
  Removing an AOI from your map is easy as, 1) Click the icon, 2) Click anywhere on the AOI you want removed, and 3) Click Save.
• For Any Specific Point: You can see mining history for a specific point on the map by first turning off County Borders, then single clicking anywhere on the map