Forest biomass is an essential indicator for monitoring the Earth's ecosystems and climate. It is a critical input to greenhouse gas accounting, estimation of carbon losses and forest degradation, assessment of renewable energy potential, and for developing climate change mitigation policies such as REDD+, among others. Wall-to-wall mapping of aboveground biomass (AGB) is now possible with satellite remote sensing (RS). However, RS methods require extant, up-to-date, reliable, representative and comparable in situ data for calibration and validation. Here, we present the Forest Observation System (FOS) initiative, an international cooperation to establish and maintain a global in situ forest biomass database. AGB and canopy height estimates with their associated uncertainties are derived at a 0.25 ha scale from field measurements made in permanent research plots across the world's forests. All plot estimates are geolocated and have a size that allows for direct comparison with many RS measurements. The FOS offers the potential to improve the accuracy of RS-based biomass products while developing new synergies between the RS and ground-based ecosystem research communities.

5 N Sukachev Institute of Forest Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science Academgorodok 50 Krasnoyarsk 660036 Russia

AMAP IRD CNRS CIRAD INRA University Montpellier Montpellier France

Bioversity international P O Box 2008 Messa Yaoundé Cameroun

Center for Agricultural research in Suriname CELOS 1914 Paramaribo Suriname

Center of Forest Ecology and Productivity of the Russian Academy of Sciences Profsoyuznaya 84 32 14 Moscow 117997 Russia

Centre for International Forestry Research CIFOR Jalan CIFOR Situ Gede Bogor 16115 Indonesia

Cibodas Botanic Gardens Indonesian Institute of Sciences Jl Kebun Raya Cibodas Cipanas Cianjur 43253 Indonesia

CIRAD Forêts et Sociétés Campus International de Baillarguet Montpellier F 34398 France

CIRAD UMR EcoFoG Campus Agronomique BP 701 Kourou 97387 France French Guiana

Department Forest Ecology and Management The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences SLU Umeå SE 901 83 Sweden

Department Foresterie et Environnement Institut National Polytechnique Félix Houphouët Boigny INP HB Yamoussoukro BP 2661 Côte d'Ivoire

Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California 621 Charles E Young Dr South Los Angeles CA 90095 1606 USA

Department of Environment and Geography University of York Heslington York YO10 5NG UK

Department of Forest Sciences Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture University of Sao Paolo PO Box 9 Av Pádua Dias 11 Piracicaba São Paulo 13418 900 Brazil

Department of Geographical Sciences University of Maryland 2181 Lefrak Hall College Park MD 20742 USA

Department of Geography and Earth Sciences Aberystwyth University Aberystwyth SY23 3DB UK

Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science Division of Terrestrial Ecosystem research University of Vienna Althanstrasse 14 Vienna A 1090 Austria

Ecosystems Services and Management Program International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis Laxenburg A 2361 Austria

Embrapa Amazonia Oriental Travessa Doutor Enéas Pinheiro Belém PA 66095 903 Brazil

Embrapa BR 364 Caixa postal 321 Rio Branco CEP 69 900 970 Brazil

Embrapa Rodovia AM 10 km 29 Manaus AM 69010 970 Brazil

Embrapa Rodovia Juscelino Kubitscheck Km 5 no 2 600 Macapa Caixa Postal 10 CEP 68903 419 Brazil

European Space Agency ESTEC Noordwijk The Netherlands

FOERDIA Forestry and Environment Research Development and Innovation Agency Jalan Gunung Batu No 5 Bogor 16610 Indonesia

Forest Global Earth Observatory Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute P O Box 37012 Washington 20013 USA

Forest Management in Bolivia Sacta Bolivia

Forest Research Institute Department of Geomatics Braci Leśnej 3 Sękocin Stary Raszyn 05 090 Poland

Forestry faculty Bauman Moscow State Technical University Mytischi 141005 Russia

Forestry Research Institute of Ghana UP Box 63 KNUST Kumasi Ghana

Forêts et Sociétés Univ Montpellier CIRAD Montpellier F 34398 France

FRIM Forest Research Institute of Malaysia 52109 Kepong Selangor Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

FRIM Forest Reserach Institute of Malaysia 52109 Kepong Selangor Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

Geography College of Life and Environmental Sciences University of Exeter Laver Building North Park Road Exeter EX4 4QE UK

Global Change Research Institute CAS Bělidla 986 4a Brno 603 00 Czech Republic

Guyana Forestry Commission 1 Water Street Kingston Georgetown Guyana

Herbier National du Gabon B P 1165 Libreville Gabon

Hiroshima University 1 7 1 Kagamiyama Higashi Hiroshima Hiroshima 739 8521 Japan

IBIF Instituto Boliviano de Investigacion Forestal Av 6 de agosto 28 Km 14 doble via La Guardia Santa Cruz Casilla 6204 Bolivia

IIC The Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development 77 High Street Georgetown Guyana

Institut Centrafricain de Recherche Agronomique ICRA BP 122 Bangui Central African Republic

Institute for Evolutionary Ecology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine Lebedev 37 Kyiv 03143 Ukraine

Institute of Biology Komi Scientific Center Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences Kommunisticheskaya 28 Syktyvkar 167982 Russia

Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana Av Abelardo Quiñones km 2 5 Iquitos Apartado Postal 784 Peru

Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia Coordenação de Pesquisas em Silvicultura Tropical Manaus 69060 001 Brazil

International Center for Tropical Botany Department of Biological Sciences Florida International University 11200 S W 8th Street Miami 33199 FL USA

Jardín Botánico de Missouri; Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad del Cusco Oxapampa Peru

Joint Remote Sensing Research Program School of Earth and Environmental Sciences University of Queensland Chamberlain Building Campbell Road St Lucia Campus Brisbane 4072 Australia

Laboratoire Evolution et Diversité Biologique CNRS Université Paul Sabatier Toulouse France

Laboratório de Ecologia Vegetal Universidade do Estado de Mato Grosso UNEMAT Campus de Nova Xavantina Nova Xavantina Mato Grosso 78 690 000 Brazil

Mensuration Unit Forestry Commission of Ghana 4 3rd Avenue Ridge Kumasi POB M434 Ghana

Morton Arboretum 4100 Illinois Rte 53 Lisle 60532 IL USA

Museo de Historia Natural Noel Kempff Mercado Universidad Autónoma Gabriel Rene Moreno Av Irala 565 casilla 2489 Santa Cruz Bolivia

Museu Universitário Universidade Federal do Acre BR 364 Km 04 Distrito Industrial Rio Branco 69915 559 Brazil

National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine General Rodimtsev 19 Kyiv 3041 Ukraine

Naturalis Biodiversity Center Leiden The Netherlands

New Zealand Forest Research Institute Te Papa Tipu Innovation Park 49 Sala Street Rotorua 3046 New Zealand

Nicholas School of the Environment Duke University P O Box 90328 Durham NC 27708 USA

ONF ONF Réserve de Montabo Cayenne Cedex Cayenne BP 7002; 97307 French Guiana

Plant Systematic and Ecology Laboratory University of Yaoundé 1 P O Box 047 Yaounde Cameroon

Reshetnev Siberian state university of science and technology pr Mira 82 Krasnoyarsk 660049 Russia

Russian Institute of Continuous Education in Forestry Institutskaya 17 Pushkino 141200 Russia

School of Biological Sciences University of Aberdeen Cruickshank Building St Machar Drive Aberdeen AB24 3UU UK

School of Biology University of Leeds Leeds LS2 9JT UK

School of Geography and the Environment University of Oxford Oxford OX1 3QY UK

School of Geography University of Leeds Leeds LS2 9JT UK

School of Natural Sciences Bangor University Thoday Building Deiniol Rd Bangor LL57 2UW United Kingdom

SI Entomology Smithsonian Institution PO Box 37012 MRC 187 Washington DC DC 20013 7012 USA

Siberian Federal University Svobodnyy Ave 79 Krasnoyarsk 660041 Russia

Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute 1100 Jefferson Dr SW Suite 3123 Washington DC 20560 0705 USA

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Balboa Ancon Panama 3092 Panama

Sodefor boulevard François Mitterrand Cocody Abidjan 01BP 3770 Côte d'Ivoire

Spatial Focus GmbH Vienna Austria

State Nature Reserve Denezhkin Kamen Lenina 6 Sverdlovsk reg Severouralsk 624480 Russia

The Field Musium 1400S Lake Shore Dr Chicago IL 60605 USA

The Landscapes and Livelihoods Group 20 Chambers St Edinburgh EH1 1JZ UK

U Gent Woodlab Laboratory of Wood Technology Department of Environment Ghent University Ghent 9000 Belgium

Unaffiliated Sommersbergseestrasse 291 Bad Aussee 8990 Austria

Universidad Autónoma del Beni Riberalta Bolivia

Universidad Autonoma Gabriel Rene Moreno Santa Cruz Bolivia

Universidad Politecnica de Madrid Calle Ramiro de Maeztu 7 Madrid 28040 Spain

University College London 30 Guilford Street London WC1N 1EH UK

University of Oregon 1585 E 13th Ave Eugene OR 97403 USA

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World Wildlife Fund Calle Diego de Mendoza 299 Santa Cruz de la Sierra Bolivia

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The Forest Observation System, building a global reference dataset for remote sensing of forest biomass