The map is based on satellite data obtained from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometre (AVHRR) on board the NOAA-14 satellite. Each land cover type can be identified by its unique spectral signature. Each signature is identified by a particular colour on the map. The land cover classes shown on the map are: coniferous forest, broadleaf forest, mixed forest, transition treed shrubland, wetland-shrubland, grassland, tundra, cropland and snow-ice. In addition, four examples of these types of land cover are shown in photographic images: snow-ice, coniferous forest, broadleaf forest and cropland. Included on the map are photographs of four of the major classes: a glacier (snow-ice), a coniferous forest, a broadleaf forest and cropland.