NDVI dynamics as reflected in climatic variables: spatial and temporal trends – a case study of Hungary

Understanding climate change and revealing its future paths on a local level is a great challenge for the future. Beside the expanding sets of available climatic data, satellite images provide a valuable source of information. In our study we aimed to reveal whether satellite data are an appropriate way to identify global trends, given their shorter available time range. We used the CARPATCLIM (CC) database (1961–2010) and the MODIS NDVI images (2000–2016) and evaluated the time period covered by both (2000–2010). We performed a regression analysis between the NDVI and CC variables, and a time series analysis for the 1961–2008 and 2000–2008 periods at all data points. The results justified the belief that maximum temperature (TMAX), potential evapotranspiration and aridity all have a strong correlation with the NDVI; furthermore, the short period trend of TMAX can be described with a functional connection with its long period trend. Consequently, TMAX is an appropriate tool as an explanatory variable for NDVI spatial and temporal variance. Spatial pattern analysis revealed that with regression coefficients, macro-regions reflected topography (plains, hills and mountains), while in the case of time series regression slopes, it justified a decreasing trend from western areas (Transdanubia) to eastern ones (The Great Hungarian Plain). This is an important consideration for future agricultural and land use planning; i.e. that western areas have to allow for greater effects of climate change.     

Abrupt spatiotemporal land and water changes and their potential drivers in Poyang Lake, 2000–2012

Driven by various natural and anthropogenic factors, Poyang Lake, the largest freshwater lake in China, has experienced significant land use/cover changes in the past few decades. The aim of this study is to investigate the spatial–temporal patterns of abrupt changes and detect their potential drivers in Poyang Lake, using time-series Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) 16-day maximum value composite vegetation indices between 2000 and 2012. The breaks for additive seasonal and trend (BFAST) method was applied to the smoothed time-series normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), to detect the timing and magnitude of abrupt changes in the trend component. Large part of Poyang Lake (98.9% for trend component) has experienced abrupt changes in the past 13 years, and the change patterns, including the distributions in timing and magnitudes of major abrupt trend changes between water bodies and land areas were clearly differentiated. Most water bodies had abrupt increasing NDVI changes between 2010 and 2011, caused by the sequential severe flooding and drought in the two years. In contrast, large parts of the surrounding land areas had abrupt decreasing NDVI changes. Large decreasing changes occurred around 2003 at the city of Nanchang, which were driven by urbanization. These results revealed spatial–temporal land cover changing patterns and potential drivers in the wetland ecosystem of Poyang Lake.     

Interpretation of crop growth patterns by means of NDVI‐time series in Zambia

A method to correlate crop production in Zambia to the yearly evolution of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is proposed. The method consists of the analysis of remote sensing data together with meteorological data and simulated crop production to obtain indicators of crop production. The accuracy of these indicators is assessed with statistical data.

The main objective was to assess whether the NDVI‐time series extracted from NOAA‐AVHRR‐images , having a pixel resolution of 73 km may give reliable information on crop production in Zambia where agricultural areas cover just 1% of the land area.

The mean NDVI‐value of several pixels, e.g. for one province or other administrative units, relates to the dominant type of vegetation in the area under consideration.

It is shown that the 7.3 km NDVI‐data give reliable indications on crop production in Zambia, when small areas (200–450 km² large ) are considered where agricultural land use is intensive. This implies that preliminary analysis is required to localize the agricultural areas. This has been done by means of high resolution satellite images i.e. LANDSAT‐MultiSpectral Scanner.

Consequently, the NDVI‐time series of the ‘agricultural ‘ pixels are used to calculate crop growth indicators which can be applied to assess the crop production.     

MODIS NDVI和AVHRR NDVI 对草原植被变化监测差异

以草地作为研究载体,对比分析草原植被AVHRR NDVI和MODIS NDVI两种NDVI序列的年内、年际变化特征,讨论两种NDVI序列对降水量、平均气温和水汽压3种气候因子的响应差异,为合理选择NDVI序列对植被进行监测研究提供参考。结果表明：(1)两种NDVI序列所反映的草原植被年内变化趋势相似,但MODIS NDVI对各类草原的区分度优于AVHRR NDVI;(2)两种NDVI序列所反映的2000年—2003年草原植被年际变化差异明显。较之于MODIS NDVI,AVHRR NDVI变化趋势分类图表现出更强的植被改善趋势,植被改善面积在AVHRR NDVI变化趋势分类图中占94.25%,在MODIS NDVI中为83.33%;两种NDVI变化趋势分类图反映的植被变化趋势吻合度为52.88%。(3)两种NDVI序列与水汽压、降水量相关性差异显著。MODIS NDVI与各站点平均气温的相关系数均大于GIMMS NDVI;而MODIS NDVI与水汽压的相关系数83%(10个站点)小于GIMMS NDVI,与降水量的相关系数67%(8个站点)小于GIMMS NDVI。     

Developing soil indices based on brightness,darkness, and greenness to improve land surface mapping accuracy

Soil, as one of the three basic biophysical components, has been understudied using remote sensing techniques compared to vegetation and impervious surface areas (ISA). This study characterized land surfaces based on the brightness–darkness–greenness model. These three dimensions, brightness, darkness, and greenness, were represented by the first Tasseled Cap Transformation (TC1), Normalize Difference Snow Index (NDSI), and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), respectively. The Ratio Index for Bright Soil (RIBS) was developed based on TC1 and NDSI, and the Product Index for Dark Soil (PIDS) was established by TC1 and NDVI. Their applications to the Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager images and 500 m 8-day composite Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) in China revealed the efficiency. The two soil indices proficiently highlighted soil covers with consistently the smallest values, due to larger TC1 and smaller NDSI values in bright soil, and smaller NDVI and TC1 values in dark soil. The RIBS is capable of distinguishing bright soil from ISA without masking vegetation and water body. The spectral separability bright soil and ISA were perfect, with a Jeffries–Matusita distance of 1.916. And the PIDS was the only soil index that could discriminate dark soil from other land covers including ISA. The soil areas in China were classified using a simple threshold method based on MODIS images. An overall accuracy of 94.00% was obtained, with the kappa index of 0.8789. This study provided valuable insights into developing indices for characterizing land surfaces from different perspectives.     

不同趋势法的宁夏长时序植被变化分析

宁夏地处黄土高原,植被变化趋势直接影响其生态保护。本文应用2005—2015年的MODIS NDVI月合成产品,并采用最大合成法得到年NDVI数据,分别利用一元线性回归法和Sen+Mann-Kendall法对宁夏11年间植被变化趋势和空间差异进行研究分析。结果表明,在月际变化上,月NDVI均值呈高斯分布,7—9月是植被长势最好的阶段;在年际变化上,2005—2007年NDVI值明显增长,2008—2012年NDVI值呈稳定性增长,2013—2015年NDVI值有下降趋势;在变化趋势上,一元线性回归法与Sen+Mann-Kendall法得到的植被变化趋势基本一致,均表现为北部植被整体改善,但局部城区植被退化较为严重;中部地区轻微改善,局部存在明显改善;南部植被有明显改善且植被改善面积较大;通过差异性分析二者差异性仅为22.95%,且Sen+Mann-Kendall法能更好地监测轻微变化区域,变化趋势更加准确。     

基于EOS/MODIS若尔盖高原地区湿地信息提取及变化监测

以若尔盖高原地区为研究区,利用多时相中分辨率成像光谱仪MODIS(Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer)遥感影像数据,采用基于归一化植被指数(NDVI)的时间序列谐波分析方法,对2001~2013年夏季的MODIS/NDVI和MODIS/EVI进行重构,去除云干扰,采用决策树分类方法获取若尔盖高原地区2001~2013年夏季湿地信息的分布数据并作统计。结果表明:基于EOS/MODIS遥感数据,采用决策树分类方法获取若尔盖高原地区的湿地信息数据是可行的;若尔盖高原地区的湿地面积是随年际的变化呈锐减趋势,若尔盖高原地区湿地的退化主要是受到近年来气候暖干化的影响,人类活动则加剧了湿地萎缩及退化的趋势。     

Assessing land cover change resulting from large surface mining development

A remote sensing based land cover change assessment methodology is presented and applied to a case study of the Oil Sands Mining Development in Athabasca, Alta., Canada. The primary impact was assessed using an information extraction method applied to two LANDSAT scenes. The analysis based on derived land cover maps shows a decrease of natural vegetation in the study area (715,094 ha) for 2001 approximately −8.64% relative to 1992. Secondary assessment based on a key resources indicator (KRI), calculated using normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI measurements acquired by NOAA–AVHRR satellites), air temperature and global radiation was performed for a time period from 1990 to 2002. KRI trend analysis indicates a slightly decreasing trend in vegetation greenness in close proximity to the mining development. A good agreement between the time series of inter-annual variations in NDVI and air temperature is observed increasing the confidence of NDVI as an indicator for assessing vegetation productivity and its sensitivity to changes in local conditions.     

Environmental assessment and land change analysis in seminatural land covers applicable to land management

The present research is based on the hypertemporal analysis of a set of 212 images from the NDVI index from January 2003 to March 2012 provided by the medium-resolution sensor MODIS TERRA. The study area is located in the center of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain). The specific objectives of the study are to investigate the rhythms of the annual development of the NDVI of each of the classes, determine the classes that are most sensitive to climatic variability and define the interannual sequences of variation in NDVI with an associated trend analysis. The classes situated in lower-altitude areas are strongly dependent on autumn rainfall and present negative temporal tendencies, and those situated at mountaintops and on upper slopes are correlated with spring–summer temperatures and exhibit stable or positive tendencies.     

Monitoring and analysing the Emirate of Dubai’s land use/land cover changes: an integrated,low-cost remote sensing approach

This study presents a modified low-cost approach, which integrates the spectral angle mapper and image difference algorithms in order to enhance classification maps for the purpose of monitoring and analysing land use/land cover change between 2000 and 2015 for the Emirate of Dubai. The approach was modified by collecting 320 training samples from QuickBird images with a spatial resolution of 0.6 m, as well as carrying out field observations, followed by the application of a 3?×?3 Soble filter, sieving classes, majority/minority analysis, and clump classes of the obtained classification maps. The accuracy assessment showed that the targeted 2000, 2005, 2010 and 2015 classification maps have 88.1252%, 89.0699%, 90.1225% and 96.0965% accuracy, respectively. The results showed that the built-up area increased by 233.721?km² (5.81%) between 2000 and 2005 and continues to increase even up and till the present time. The assessment of changes in the periods 2000–2005 and 2010–2015 confirmed that net vegetation area losses were more pronounced from 2000 to 2005 than from 2010 to 2015, dropping from 47,618 to 40,820?km², respectively. This study is aimed to assist urban planners and decision-makers, as well as research institutes.     

光谱指数趋势面的城市地表温度降尺度转换

针对城市及周边区域建造区和自然地表交织分布的特点,探讨了利用归一化植被指数(NDVI)和归一化建造指数(NDBI)构造趋势面的地表温度(LST)降尺度方法,以北京市市区及周边较平坦区域为例实现了LST自960 m向120 m的降尺度转换。分析了LST空间分布特征及NDVI、NDBI对地物的指示性特征;以北京市四至六环为界分析NDVI、NDBI趋势面对地表温度的拟合程度及各自的适用区域;在120 m、240 m、480 m和960 m 4个尺度上评价了NDVI、NDBI和NDVI+NDBI趋势面对LST的拟合程度和趋势面转换函数的尺度效应;对NDVI、NDBI和NDVI NDBI等3种方法的降尺度结果分覆盖类型、分区域对比评价。实验结果表明结合两种光谱指数的NDVI NDBI方法降尺度转换精度有所改善,改善程度取决于地表覆盖类型组合。     

融合高时空分辨率数据估算植被净初级生产力

植被净初级生产力NPP(Net Primary Production)遥感估算与分析,有赖于高时空分辨率的遥感数据,但目前中高分辨率的遥感数据受卫星回访周期及天气的影响,在中国南方地区难以获取连续时间序列的数据,从而影响了高精度的区域植被净初级生产力的遥感估算。为此,提出一种基于多源遥感数据时空融合技术与CASA模型估算高时空分辨率NPP的方法。首先,利用多源遥感数据,即Landsat8 OLI数据与MODIS13Q1数据,采用遥感数据时空融合方法,获得了时间序列的Landsat8 OLI融合数据;然后,基于Landsat8 OLI时空融合数据,并采用CASA模型,以长株潭城市群核心区为例,进行区域植被NPP的遥感估算。研究结果表明,基于时间序列Landsat融合数据估算的30m分辨率的NPP具有良好的空间细节信息,且估算值与实测值的相关系数达0.825,与实测NPP数据保持了较好的一致性。     

高分四号卫星在干旱遥感监测中的应用

高分四号(GF-4)是国家高分辨率对地观测系统重大专项天基系统中的一颗地球同步卫星,为探索GF-4号卫星在大面积干旱监测中的应用,本文对该卫星在快速监测大面积干旱方面的应用能力进行了初步探讨。以2016年内蒙古自治区巴林左旗和巴林右旗地区严重旱灾为例,利用NDVI差值对该区域的干旱情况进行了监测,并与MODIS NDVI产品进行对比分析,得到了研究区内2016年干旱分布情况,结果表明其总体趋势与MODIS NDVI产品一致,且细节信息更加丰富。本文主要是GF-4卫星数据结合GF-1卫星数据对内蒙部分干旱区域进行监测和分析,体现了国产高分辨率卫星数据,尤其是GF-4卫星数据,对提高中国突发灾害的应对能力具有重要意义。     

Spatiotemporal Change of Aeolian Desertification Land Distribution in Northern China from 2001 to 2015

Land desertification is one of the world’s most important global ecological environment problems and sensitive to global climate change. In this study, Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Gaofen-1 (GF-1) data were used to obtain aeolian desertification land distribution in Northern China. Aeolian desertification land distribution from 2001 to 2015 was used to analyze the spatiotemporal change in this area. Results show that aeolian desertification situation of 70 counties is expanded with low slope values and 250 counties is reversed. Aeolian desertification situation in most areas is improved in recent 15 years. Gravity center of the aeolian desertification has a trend to move towards the direction of the high latitude and low longitude. It moves towards north about 0.06° and west about 2.2° from 2001 to 2015. The main distribution area is between 90–100°E, 30–?40°N and altitude which less than 2000 m in desert and steppe climate zone. Aeolian desertification is worsening in recent 5 years around rivers and lakes. In recent years, the government has made great efforts to strengthen ecological construction with positive effect, but we still need to pay more attention to environment deterioration of rivers, lakes and the nearby areas in the future.     

Generation of high spatial and temporal resolution NDVI and its application in crop biomass estimation

Abstract

While data like HJ-1 CCD images have advantageous spatial characteristics for describing crop properties, the temporal resolution of the data is rather low, which can be easily made worse by cloud contamination. In contrast, although Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) can only achieve a spatial resolution of 250 m in its normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) product, it has a high temporal resolution, covering the Earth up to multiple times per day. To combine the high spatial resolution and high temporal resolution of different data sources, a new method (Spatial and Temporal Adaptive Vegetation index Fusion Model [STAVFM]) for blending NDVI of different spatial and temporal resolutions to produce high spatial–temporal resolution NDVI datasets was developed based on Spatial and Temporal Adaptive Reflectance Fusion Model (STARFM). STAVFM defines a time window according to the temporal variation of crops, takes crop phenophase into consideration and improves the temporal weighting algorithm. The result showed that the new method can combine the temporal information of MODIS NDVI and spatial difference information of HJ-1 CCD NDVI to generate an NDVI dataset with both high spatial and high temporal resolution. An application of the generated NDVI dataset in crop biomass estimation was provided. An average absolute error of 17.2% was achieved. The estimated winter wheat biomass correlated well with observed biomass (R ² of 0.876). We conclude that the new dataset will improve the application of crop biomass estimation by describing the crop biomass accumulation in detail. There is potential to apply the approach in many other studies, including crop production estimation, crop growth monitoring and agricultural ecosystem carbon cycle research, which will contribute to the implementation of Digital Earth by describing land surface processes in detail.     

Comparing spatiotemporal patterns in Eurasian FPAR derived from two NDVI-based methods

Abstract

A long-term, consistent Fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FPAR) product is necessary to study the spatial and temporal patterns of vegetation dynamics associated with climatic changes and human activities. In this study, Eurasia was selected as the study area. The relationship between FPAR and simple infrared/red ratio relationship (SR FPAR), and that between Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) FPAR and a Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) look-up table (LUT FPAR) were employed to estimate FPAR from 1982 to 2006 by different land cover types, focusing on the comparisons of spatiotemporal FPAR patterns between the two FPAR datasets. The results showed high agreement between MODIS standard FPAR and estimated FPAR in seasonal dynamics with peak values in July. The LUT FPAR was close to MODIS standard FPAR and larger than SR FPAR. The SR and LUT FPAR showed the same spatial distribution and inter-annual variation patterns and were primarily determined by land cover types. An overall increasing trend in FPAR was observed from 1982 to 2006, with reductions from 1991 to 1994 and 2000 to 2002. The inter-annual dynamics in evergreen broadleaf forests showed a decreasing trend over 25 years, while non-forest vegetation FPAR values had slow, stable growth in inter-annual variation.     

Using remote sensing imagery to determine the impact of land cover changes on potential runoff for the Mid-Cibolo Creek watershed,Texas

Land cover changes within watersheds have the potential to produce dramatic changes in surface hydrology, namely runoff, in the event of storms. The Mid-Cibolo Creek watershed in south-central Texas has experienced extensive land-cover change in the past two decades due to mass residential development and land clearing in the wake of urban growth along the I-35 corridor. This study determined land-cover changes within the basin using supervised classification to classify land cover from LANDSAT images for the years 1986 and 1999. Changes in runoff volume were then calculated using the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) runoff equation for a series of rainfall scenarios. The results showed that an overall increase in impervious cover and decrease in natural vegetative cover has occurred leading to larger runoff volumes for all storm scenarios. The findings are important for watershed scale urban expansion and land clearing practices as current methods suggest that flood risk is increased.     

基于MODIS NDVI的科尔沁沙地荒漠化动态监测

以MODIS植被指数产品为数据源,利用归一化植被指数(NDVI)与植被盖度的高相关性,以NDVI为荒漠化评价的定量依据进行荒漠化程度划分,得出科尔沁沙地2000年与2007年的NDVI分级分布图,并分别统计出相应的不同程度荒漠化土地面积所占比例; 最后,利用不同等级荒漠化土地面积所占比例和NDVI分级分布图所提供的空间分配状况来评价研究区荒漠化程度及动态变化状况.研究结果表明,2000年至2007年科尔沁沙地荒漠化程度总体上呈减少趋势.     

Fusing MODIS with Landsat 8 data to downscale weekly normalized difference vegetation index estimates for central Great Basin rangelands,USA

Data fused from distinct but complementary satellite sensors mitigate tradeoffs that researchers make when selecting between spatial and temporal resolutions of remotely sensed data. We integrated data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor aboard the Terra satellite and the Operational Land Imager sensor aboard the Landsat 8 satellite into four regression-tree models and applied those data to a mapping application. This application produced downscaled maps that utilize the 30-m spatial resolution of Landsat in conjunction with daily acquisitions of MODIS normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) that are composited and temporally smoothed. We produced four weekly, atmospherically corrected, and nearly cloud-free, downscaled 30-m synthetic MODIS NDVI predictions (maps) built from these models. Model results were strong with R² values ranging from 0.74 to 0.85. The correlation coefficients (r ≥ 0.89) were strong for all predictions when compared to corresponding original MODIS NDVI data. Downscaled products incorporated into independently developed sagebrush ecosystem models yielded mixed results. The visual quality of the downscaled 30-m synthetic MODIS NDVI predictions were remarkable when compared to the original 250-m MODIS NDVI. These 30-m maps improve knowledge of dynamic rangeland seasonal processes in the central Great Basin, United States, and provide land managers improved resource maps.     

Spatial analysis of human-induced vegetation productivity decline over eastern Africa using a decade (2001–2011) of medium resolution MODIS time-series data

Climate variation and land transformations related to exploitative land uses are among the main drivers of vegetation productivity decline and ongoing land degradation in East Africa. We combined analysis of vegetation trends and cumulative rain use efficiency differences (CRD), calculated from 250-m MODIS NDVI time-series data, to map vegetation productivity loss over eastern Africa between 2001 and 2011. The CRD index values were furthermore used to discern areas of particular severe vegetation productivity loss over the observation period. Monthly 25-km Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) data metrics were used to mask areas of rainfall declines not related to human-induced land productivity loss. To provide insights on the productivity decline, we linked the MODIS-based vegetation productivity map to land transformation processes using very high resolution (VHR) imagery in Google Earth (GE) and a Landsat-based land-cover change map. In total, 3.8 million ha experienced significant vegetation loss over the monitoring period. An overall agreement of 68% was found between the rainfall-corrected MODIS productivity decline map and all reference pixels discernable from GE and the Landsat map. The CRD index showed a good potential to discern areas with ‘severe’ vegetation productivity losses under high land-use intensities.