Building and Managing Local Databases from Google Earth Engine with the geeLite R Package

Google Earth Engine has transformed geospatial analysis by providing access to petabytes of satellite imagery and geospatial data, coupled with the substantial computational power required for in-depth analysis. This accessibility empowers scientists, researchers, and non-experts alike to address critical global challenges on an unprecedented scale. In recent years, numerous R packages have emerged to leverage Google Earth Engine’s functionalities. However, constructing and managing complex spatio-temporal databases for monitoring changes in remotely sensed data remains a challenging task that often necessitates advanced coding skills. To bridge this gap, geeLite, a novel R package, is introduced to facilitate the construction, management, and updating of local databases for Google Earth Engine-computed geospatial features, which enables users to monitor their evolution over time. By storing geospatial features in SQLite format—a serverless and self-contained database solution requiring no additional setup or administration—geeLite simplifies the data collection process. Furthermore, it streamlines the conversion of stored data into native R formats and provides functions for aggregating and processing created databases to meet specific user needs.