## 3 Results and Discussion  
### Overview of the Studies and Their Geographical Distribution  
Between 2010 and 2023, the number of published studies exhibited a gradual increase (Figure 3a). There was a significant increase in the number of studies in the years 2017 (+8), 2019 (+12), 2021 (+16), and 2022 (+14). Conversely, no studies were identified in 2010, 2011, and 2015. In terms of the diverse applications of RS (Figure 3b), there is an irregular distribution concerning the number of publications and their respective publication dates. The application of WM predominates with 34 studies, followed by OTR with 15 studies, IC with 14 studies, TSPE with 12 studies and HMDD with 7 studies. Studies between 2012 and 2014 were related to the applications of TSPE, IC, WM and OTR. In contrast, studies for the HMDD application emerged later, starting in 2016. In the analysis of studies conducted by different countries (Figure 4), the USA emerges as the predominant contributor, representing 51% of the identified studies. Spain also demonstrates significant representation with 26% of the studies, followed by Australia at 11%. In contrast, several other countries exhibit a smaller research footprint, including Portugal, which accounts for 4% of the studies, and Ecuador, Israel, Turkey, Romania, Greece, and Egypt, each contributing only 1% of the studies. Remarkably, some of these countries hold a pivotal role in almond production, with the USA, particularly the state of California, leading global production with an approximately 79% share. California, leveraging advanced technological methods, achieved an impressive average production of 2400 kg of almonds per hectare in the 2019-2020 season, emphasizing the cultivation of soft-shelled, non-self-fertile cultivars and using soil harvesting techniques. Australia secures the second position in global production with 360,328 tons in 2022. The European Union modestly contributes 6% to global almond production, led by Spain, which produces 245,990 tons of almonds. Portugal also plays an important role, as it is the country with the most incredible increase in production over the last decade (2012-2022: +544%). Additionally, notable production rates are observed in countries such as Tunisia, Iran, Chile, Turkey, and Morocco [5; 16]. Figure 2: Primary author keywords identified in the reviewed manuscripts. According to the studies analyzed, the correlation is obvious--the countries that invest heavily in almond production are also leaders in the research and implementation of RS technologies in almond cultivation. However, considering Australia's position as the fourth-largest almond producer globally, a gap exists in the importance of RS studies within the Australian context, warranting further exploration. Examining the distribution of studies by country based on their RS applications (Figure 5), it is evident that in the USA (US), research spans across all applications, with an emphasis on WM constituting 23% of the studies. Spain (ES) showcases a diverse range of studies, with WM also being prominent at 13%. Particularly noteworthy in this country is the higher percentage of studies on the applications of TSPE (6%) and HMDD (5%) compared to the USA (TSPE--4% and HMDD--2%). In Australia (AU), 5% of the studies pertain to WM applications, another 5% to OTR applications, and only 1% to TSPE applications. Concerning Portugal (PT), of the 4% of studies identified, 2% belong to TSPE, 1% to IC, and 1% to HMDD. Ecuador (EC), Turkey (TR), Romania (RO), and Greece (GR) collectively account for only 1% of studies on IC applications. Conversely, Iran (IR) and Israel (IL) focus on TSPE applications, each representing 1% of the studies, while Egypt (EG) centers its research on OTR applications. Figure 4: Aggregate number of studies categorized by country. Figure 3: Overall count of publications spanning from 1 January 2010 and 12 December 2023 (**a**) and publications categorized by remote sensing application (**b**).