OBSOLETE RELEASE - The use of the GHSL Data Package 2022 (GHS P2022) is currently not recommended. CHECK FOR THE MOST UPDATED VERSION OF GHSL DATASETS AT https://ghsl.jrc.ec.europa.eu/datasets.php - The layers present the application of the Degree of Urbanisation stage I methodology recommended by UN Statistical Commission to the global population grid generated by the JRC in the epochs 1975-2030 (5 years timestep). They have been generated by integration of built-up areas extracted from Landsat and Sentinel-2 image data processing (GHS-BUILT-S R2022), and population data derived from the CIESIN GPW v4.11 (GHS-POP R2022).
This product is an update of the data released in 2019 based on the updates of the GHS-BUILT-S and GHS-POP. The Settlement Model is provided at the detailed level (Second Level - L2). First level can be obtained aggregating L2.
Schiavina, Marcello; Melchiorri, Michele; Pesaresi, Martino (2026): GHS-SMOD R2022A - GHS settlement layers, application of the Degree of Urbanisation methodology (stage I) to GHS-POP R2022A and GHS-BUILT-S R2022A, multitemporal (1975-2030) - OBSOLETE RELEASE. European Commission, Joint Research Centre [Dataset] doi: 10.2905/JRC.E6JE4HG; 10.2905/4606D58A-DC08-463C-86A9-D49EF461C47F PID: http://data.europa.eu/89h/4606d58a-dc08-463c-86a9-d49ef461c47f
degree of urbanisationGHS SMODGHS-SMODGHSLglobal maphigh density clusterlow density clustermedium density clusterrural clustersettlement modelurban centreurban clusterurban-rural population
The data is organised in several datasets, i.e., one GHS settlement grid per each epoch 1975-2030 (5 years timestep). All datasets are offered at low resolution (1km, World Mollweide projection). The compressed ZIP file contain TIF files and GPKG files of the settlements boundaries in 2020; a short documentation is also included.
Project Web site
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The Degree of Urbanisation is a new definition of cities, towns and semi-dense areas, and rural areas endorsed by the UN Statistical Commission. The urban population share according to the Degree of Urbanisation is similar to the one based on national definitions in the Americas,Europe and Oceania, but considerably higher in Africa and Asia. An empirical analysis and a comparison of concepts suggest that towns are likely to be classified as rural areas in Africa and Asia and as urban areas in other parts of the world. The paper shows that cities cover only a small share of land, but this share doubled over the past forty years, as has the number of cities.
Although cities have expanded rapidly, their population grew even faster leading to higher densities. The paper tests two classic urban facts: 1) the cities and towns as defined by the Degree of Urbanisation closely follow Zipf’s law 2) the population shares in urban areas, cities and especially metropolitan areas are positively and significantly correlated with the level of economic development. Lastly, the sensitivity of the classification of population and land are tested by varying the population size and density thresholds as well using a different global population grid.
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The Global Human Settlement Layer (GHSL) produces new global spatial information, evidence-based analytics and knowledge describing the human presence on planet Earth. It operates in a fully open and free data and methods access policy. The knowledge generated with the GHSL is supporting the definition, the public discussion and the implementation of European policies and the monitoring of international frameworks such as the 2030 Development Agenda. The GHSL are the core data set of the Exposure Mapping Component under the Copernicus Emergency Management Service. This release is the first official contribution of GHSL to the Copernicus services. GHSL data continue to support the GEO Human Planet Initiative (HPI) that is committed to developing a new generation of measurements and information products providing new scientific evidence and a comprehensive understanding of the human presence on the planet and that can support global policy processes with agreed, actionable and goal-driven metrics. The Human Planet Initiative relies on a core set of partners committed in coordinating the production of the global settlement spatial baseline data.
This document describes the public release of the GHSL Data Package 2022 (GHS P2022). The release provides improved built-up (including surface, volume and height) and population products as well as a new settlement model and classification of administrative and territorial units according to the Degree of Urbanisation.
| From date | To date |
|---|---|
| 1975-01-01 | 2030-12-31 |
