Spatial pattern recognition for near-surface high temperature increases in mountain areas using MODIS and SRTM DEM

Abrupt near-surface temperature changes in mountainous areas are a special component of the mountain climate system.Fast and accurate measurements of the locations,intensity,and width of the near-surface changes are necessary but highly difficult due to the complicated environmental conditions and instrumental issues.This paper develops a spatial pattern recognition method to measure the near-surface high temperature increase(NSHTI),one of the lesser-attended changes.First,raster window measurement was proposed to calculate the temperature lapse rate using MODIS land surface temperature and SRTM DEM data.It fully considers the terrain heights of two neighboring cells on opposite or adjacent slopes with a moving window of 3×3 cell size.Second,a threshold selection was performed to identify the NSHTI cells using a threshold of-0.65℃/100 m.Then,the NSHTI strips were parameterized through raster vectorization and spatial analysis.Taking Yunnan,a mountainous province in southwestern China,as the study area,the results indicate that the NSHTI cells concentrate in a strip-like pattern along the mountains and valleys,and the strips are almost parallel to the altitude contours with a slight northward uplift.Also,they are located mostly at a 3/5 height of high mountains or within 400 m from the valley floors,where the controlling topographic index is the altitude of the terrain trend surface but not the absolute elevation and the topographic uplift height and cutting depth.Additionally,the NSHTI intensity varies with the geographic locations and the proportions increase with an exponential trend,and the horizontal width has a mean of about 1000 m and a maximum of over 5000 m.The result demonstrates that the proposed method can effectively recognize NSHTI boundaries over mountains,providing support for the modeling of weather and climate systems and the development of mountain resources.

Optimizing Spatial Pattern Analysis in Serial Remote Sensing Images through Empirical Mode Decomposition and Ant Colony Optimization

Serial remote sensing images offer a valuable means of tracking the evolutionary changes and growth of a specific geographical area over time.Although the original images may provide limited insights,they harbor considerable potential for identifying clusters and patterns.The aggregation of these serial remote sensing images(SRSI)becomes increasingly viable as distinct patterns emerge in diverse scenarios,such as suburbanization,the expansion of native flora,and agricultural activities.In a novel approach,we propose an innovative method for extracting sequential patterns by combining Ant Colony Optimization(ACD)and Empirical Mode Decomposition(EMD).This integration of the newly developed EMD and ACO techniques proves remarkably effective in identifying the most significant characteristic features within serial remote sensing images,guided by specific criteria.Our findings highlight a substantial improvement in the efficiency of sequential pattern mining through the application of this unique hybrid method,seamlessly integrating EMD and ACO for feature selection.This study exposes the potential of our innovative methodology,particularly in the realms of urbanization,native vegetation expansion,and agricultural activities.

Spatial patterns of the main trees in a plant micro-reserve constructed in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics mountainous competition zone

Several plant micro-reserves were established to preserve the vegetation in local mountain areas during the construction of the Yanqing competition zone of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.The spatial patterns of the main species in one of the micro-reserves and the factors affecting these patterns were characterized in this study.The distribution of arbor species was found to be mostly aggregated,especially at fine scales(<5 m).Minor species were found to be more aggregated than the major species in each forest layer.The spatial patterns were found to be affected by habitat heterogeneity,intraspecific relationships,interspecific competition,and seed dispersal limitation.Habitat heterogeneity was found to affect large-scale spatial patterns,and its effects were observed throughout population development.Interspecific competition is another factor affecting the distribution of the species,and its effects were stronger during the later stages of population development.Habitat heterogeneity was found to affect competition among species and is key for species coexistence.Both these processes are affected by the seed dispersal limitation,and intraspecific relationships are a legacy of seed dispersal.The point patterns can be used as a tool for the initial assessment of the status of communities within micro-reserves.The consideration of these relationships in the development,management,and formulation of policies for micro-reserves in mountainous areas will facilitate the achievement of conservation goals.The careful consideration of habitat conditions when selecting sites for micro-reserves establishment can promote species conservation.

Classification and Spatial Pattern of Township Development in Liaoning Province, China

The classification of township development types is an urgent problem that requires solution to enable the township to choose an appropriate development path.Using a township development classification method,we determine the township development types and their spatial patterns in Liaoning Province,China.The results showed that the patterns of township development types based on their general advantages had significant spatial differentiations.The planting,and livestock and poultry breeding township development types based on general advantages were mainly distributed across the central plain of Liaoning Province,China,and also concentrated in Dandong City−Dalian City along Yellow Sea coast,and in the northwest of Chaoyang City.The business and tourism,industry and mining,and residence township development types based on general advantages were distributed mainly along the Shenyang–Dalian Economic Belt in the central and southern Liaoning Province.The ecology township development type based on general advantages was mainly distributed in the eastern and western Liaoning Province to maintain regional ecological security.Township development types based on non-advantages were sporadically distributed in the middle and western Liaoning Province.Based on the classification and spatial patterns,the differences between the distribution of twonship development types and the plan for the major functional areas of Liaoning Province were proposed which could provide the basis for the optimization of the major functional areas.

Spatial Pattern and Distribution of Crime in Suleja Lga, Niger State, Nigeria

The study examines the Spatial Pattern and Distribution of Crime in Suleja LGA, Niger State, Nigeria. The study used GIS and statistical methods to analyse the pattern and distribution of crime incidence in the study area. The records of each crime incidence were geocoded. Microsoft Excel was used to collate and organise the crime entries before they were imported into the ArcGIS Pro 2.0 environment. A geodatabase was created where the spatial and aspatial data were encoded and geospatial analysis was performed. The study reveals that the crime distribution pattern is generally clustered with a Global Moran’s I index of 0.097, a Z-score of 1.87, and a P-value < 0.06. Furthermore, the study reveals that armed robbery (61), kidnapping (40), car theft (33), culpable homicide (31), rape (29), and robbery (13) cases rank the highest in crime rate. Equally, findings of the study show that Chaza, Kwamba, Madalla, Suleja central, and Gaboda are the major crime hotspot zones at 90% confidence, as analysed using the Getis-Ord Gi* (Hot spot analysis) spatial statistics tool in ArcGIS Pro 2.0. The research therefore recommends that more effort be put into fighting crime, especially in areas where there are low-security formations, as they mostly have the highest record of crimes committed. Also, the patrol units should be equipped with GPS for better surveillance and real-time tracking of criminal activities.

Spatial patterns of Picea crassifolia driven by environmental heterogeneity and intraspecifi c interactions

Research on the spatial patterns of tree populations is critical for understanding the structure and dynamic processes of forests.However,little is known about how the underlying drivers shape these patterns and species interactions in forest systems.In this study,spatial point pattern analysis investigated the combined eff ects of intraspecifi c interactions and environmental heterogeneity on the spatial structure and internal maintenance mechanisms of Picea crassifolia in the Qilian Mountain National Nature Reserve,China.Data were obtained from a 10.2-ha dynamic monitoring plot(DMP)and sixteen 0.04-ha elevation gradient plots(EGPs).Under complete spatial randomness,both mature trees and saplings in the DMP demonstratedlarge-scale aggregation with negative correlations.In EGPs,saplings were clustered in small mesoscales,mature trees were randomly distributed,and the interactions of saplingstrees at all elevations were not correlated.By eliminating the interference of environmental heterogeneity through the inhomogeneous Poisson process,saplings in the DMP and EGPs were clustered in small scales and trees randomly distributed.Intraspecifi c associations were negatively correlated,in the DMP and at low elevations,and no correlations in high elevations of EGPs.In the vertical scale,saplings showed a small-scale aggregation pattern with increase in elevation,and the aggregation degree fi rst decreased and then increased.The interactions of saplings-trees and saplings–saplings showed inhibitions at small scales,with the degree of inhibition gradually decreasing.Spatial patterns and associations of adults–adults did not change signifi-cantly.The results revealed that intraspecifi c interactions and environmental heterogeneity regulated the spatial patterns of P.crassifolia at small and large scales,respectively.Environmental heterogeneity might be the most decisive factor aff ecting the spatial patterns of saplings,while trees were more aff ected by intraspecifi c interactions.Moreover,competition between trees in this area could be more common than facilitation for the growth and development of individuals.

Effect of arsenic on spatial pattern of radial oxygen loss and iron plaque formation in rice

The effects of different arsenic （As） treatments on spatial pattern of radial oxygen loss （ROL）, iron （Fe） plaque formation and As accumulation in rice were investigated using three rice genotypes, planted under greenhouse conditions. Arsenic was applied to soil at 50 and 100 mg/kg, with untreated soil used as a control having an average As concentration of 8.5 mg/kg. It was demonstrated that the ratio of ROL in root tips to that at the root base slightly decreased with increasing As concentration, suggesting that the spatial ROL patterns in these groups may be shifted from the “tight” barrier towards the “partial” barrier form. Furthermore, increasing As concentration led to a increase in Fe plaque formation on root surfaces. In addition, root As concentrations of genotypes in 50 and 100 mg/kg As treatments were significantly higher than that of control treatment （P〈0.05）. Grain As concentration of genotype Nanyangzhan （with lower ROL） was significantly higher （P〈0.05） than that of genotype CNT87059-3 with higher ROL.

Spatial Pattern and Process of Urbanization in Karst Area——A Case Study in Guiyang City

ObjectiveKarst area is one of ecological fragile regions in China, where the economic and social development is lagged heavily. In recent years, with the constant development of the west regions, economy and society are developed rapidly and urbanization speed is accelerated. This study aims to investigate the spatial pattern and process of urbanization in karst area of Guiyang City, which has important significance for land management and urban planning in karst area. MethodBased on RS and GIS technologies, TM satellite images in 1986, 1995 and 2000 and CBERS-01 satellite image in 2006 were adopted to obtain the data of urban land utilization in Guiyang City in the four years. The spatial pattern and process of urbanization in Guiyang City were investigated using urbanization proportion index （UPI）, urbanization intensity index （UII） and absolute expansion intensity （AEI）. ResultThe urbanization process in Guiyang City was significant, exhibiting polygon-urbanization, line-urbanization and point-urbanization. From the perspective of spatial pattern, the urbanization in Guiyang City displayed the cluster development; from the perspective of urbanization process, the urbanization speed in some secondary central areas was higher than that of central areas. ConclusionThe spatial pattern and process of urbanization in karst area were unique and were mainly influenced by terrain, transportation, economy, society and so on.

The Spatial Patterns of Road Traffic Crash Black Spots and Emergency Facilities in Federal Capital City

This study aimed at determining the spatial patterns of Road Traffic Crash (RTC) black spots, Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) zebra points and emergency health care facilities in Federal Capital City (FCC). The aim was to provide stakeholders with information that will aid their understanding of accident prone locations and accessible rescue possibilities for accident victims on the roads in FCT. GPS Map 76S Mark (GARMIN) was used to locate and pick coordinates of data in the study area. A total of 16 possible emergency health care facilities, seventy (70) RTC black spots and Five Zebra point locations were obtained from FRSC. ArcGIS 10.0 was used to compute the data by plotting the coordinates to produce maps of the spatial relationship and to carry out Nearest Neighbour Analysis (NNA). The result was further used to determine the spatial patterns of RTC black spots as well as patterns of the emergency facilities. Generally, the result shows that the spatial trend is turning towards dispersion. However, there is less than 1% likelihood that the dispersed patterns could be the result of random chance. It was recommended that, the Federal Road Safety Commission should be staffed with trained professionals that can be responsible for accident data surveillance and analysis using geospatial techniques.

Spatial pattern of dominant tree species of the secondary monsoon rain forest in Lianjiang, Guangdong Province

Based on the summed dominance ratios of species in sample plots, the first three dominant species (Litchi chinensis, Elaeocarpus sylvestris and Canarium album) of the secondary monsoon rain forest of Mt. Royal Shoe in Lianjiang City, western Guangdong, were chosen for analyzing their spatial distribution pattern with the analysis methods such as frequency models of Poisson Distribution, Two Negative Items Distribution, Neyman Distribution, aggregate indexes, Taylor exponential equation and Iwao’s equation modeling. The results showed that these three species distributed in the congregate spatial pattern. Litchi chinensis and Elaeocarpus sylvestris had the characteristic of basic congregate population and attractive characteristic between their plants. The patterns for Canarium album may change and become more evenly distributed with the increase of density. The overall species spatial pattern also depended on the conservation of the secondary monsoon rain forest besides it was affected by the species reproduction characteristics and its growing environment. The congregate spatial patterns of three dominant species showed that it is important to conserve forest urgent conservation of the forest.

Geostatistical Analysis on Spatial Patterns of Eggs and Larvae of Kytorhinus immixtus

[ Objective ] The paper was to study the spatial distribution pattern and spatial correlation of eggs and larvae of Kytorhinus immixtus. [ Method ] By using geostatistical principles and methods, the number of eggs and larvae ofK. immixtus was investigated, and the obtained data were analyzed. [Result]The cir- cular model was the best fitting model for eggs and larvae of/C immixtus, and the spatial distribution pattern was aggregated distribution with a spatial correlation, and their variation ranges were 18.899 -62.922 and 13.464 -47.455. The distribution pattern of eggs and larvae of K.immistus was simulated by using ordinary Kriging method, and the result showed that their distributions had obvious agitated character, the aggregated intensity in the core area of patch was significantly higher than that in the edge. There was anisotropy of aggregation intensity, the aggregation intensity from northeast to southwest direction was significantly higher than that from northwest to southeast direction. [ Conclusion] The spatial distribution pattern of eggs and larvae of K. immixtus was aggregated distribution, and the increase of plant distance and fragmentation of patch had a certain control effect on the occurrence of K. immixtus population.

Spatial patterns and driving forces of land use change in China during the early 21st century

Land use and land cover change as the core of coupled human-environment systems has become a potential field of land change science （LCS） in the study of global environmental change. Based on remotely sensed data of land use change with a spatial resolution of 1 km × 1 km on national scale among every 5 years, this paper designed a new dynamic regionalization according to the comprehensive characteristics of land use change including regional differentiation, physical, economic, and macro-policy factors as well. Spatial pattern of land use change and its driving forces were investigated in China in the early 21 st century. To sum up, land use change pattern of this period was characterized by rapid changes in the whole country. Over the agricultural zones, e.g., Huang-Huai-Hai Plain, the southeast coastal areas and Sichuan Basin, a great proportion of fine arable land were engrossed owing to considerable expansion of the built-up and residential areas, resulting in decrease of paddy land area in southern China. The development of oasis agriculture in Northwest China and the reclamation in Northeast China led to a slight increase in arable land area in northern China. Due to the ＂Grain for Green＂ policy, forest area was significantly increased in the middle and western developing regions, where the vegetation coverage was substantially enlarged, likewise. This paper argued the main driving forces as the implementation of the strategy on land use and regional development, such as policies of ＂Western Development＂, ＂Revitalization of Northeast＂, coupled with rapidly economic development during this period.

Spatial patterns of ecosystem vulnerability changes during 2001–2011 in the three-river source region of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China

The three-river source region (TRSR, including Yangtze, Yellow and Lancang rivers), located in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China, is a typical alpine zone with apparent ecosystem vulnerability and sensitivity. In this paper, we introduced many interdisciplinary factors, such as landscape pattern indices (Shannon diversity index and Shannon evenness index) and extreme climate factors (number of extreme high temperature days, number of extreme low temperature days, and number of extreme precipitation days), to establish a new model for evaluating the spatial patterns of ecosystem vulnerability changes in the TRSR. The change intensity (CI) of ecosystem vulnerability was also analyzed. The results showed that the established evaluation model was effective and the ecosystem vulnerability in the whole study area was intensive. During the study period of 2001–2011, there was a slight degradation in the eco-environmental quality. The Yellow River source region had the best eco-environmental quality, while the Yangtze River source region had the worst one. In addition, the zones dominated by deserts were the most severely deteriorated areas and the eco-environmental quality of the zones occupied by evergreen coniferous forests showed a better change. Furthermore, the larger the change rates of the climate factors (accumulative temperature of ≥10°C and annual average precipitation) are, the more intensive the CI of ecosystem vulnerability is. This study would provide a scientific basis for the eco-environmental protection and restoration in the TRSR.

NDVI spatial pattern and its differentiation on the Mongolian Plateau

GIMMS NDVI database and geo-statistics were used to depict the spatial distribution and temporal stability of NDVI on the Mongolian Plateau.The results demonstrated that:(1) Regions of interest with high NDVI indices were distributed primarily in forested mountainous regions of the east and the north,areas with low NDVI indices were primarily distributed in the Gobi desert regions of the west and the southwest,and areas with moderate NDVI values were mainly distributed in a middle steppe strap from northwest to southeast.(2) The maximum NDVI values maintained for the past 22 years showed little variation.The average NDVI variance coefficient for the 22-year period was 15.2%.(3) NDVI distribution and vegetation cover showed spatial autocorrelations on a global scale.NDVI patterns from the vegetation cover also demonstrated anisotropy;a higher positive spatial correlation was indicated in a NW-SE direction,which suggested that vegetation cover in a NW-SE direction maintained increased integrity,and vegetation assemblage was mainly distributed in the same specific direction.(4) The NDVI spatial distribution was mainly controlled by structural factors,88.7% of the total spatial variation was influenced by structural and 11.3% by random factors.And the global autocorrelation distance was 1178 km,and the average vegetation patch length(NW-SE) to width(NE-SW) ratio was approximately 2.4:1.0.

Seismogenic fault and topography control on the spatial patterns of landslides triggered by the 2017 Jiuzhaigou earthquake

Jiuzhaigou National Park, located in northwest plateau of Sichuan Province, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and one of the most popular scenic areas in China. On August 8, 2017, a Mw 6.5 earthquake occurred 5 km to the west of a major scenic area, causing 25 deaths and injuring 525, and the Park was seriously affected. The objective of this study was to explore the controls of seismogenic fault and topographic factors on the spatial patterns of these landslides. Immediately after the main shock, field survey, remote-sensing investigations, and statistical and spatial analysis were undertaken. At least 2212 earthquake-triggered landslides were identified, covering a total area of 11.8 km^2. Thesewere mainly shallow landslides and rock falls. Results demonstrated that landslides exhibited a close spatial correlation with seismogenic faults. More than 85% of the landslides occurred at 2200 to 3700 m elevations. The largest quantity of landslides was recorded in places with local topographic reliefs ranging from 200 to 500 m. Slopes in the range of ~20°-50° are the most susceptible to failure. Landslides occurred mostly on slopes facing east-northeast(ENE), east(E), east-southeast(ESE), and southeast(SE), which were nearly vertical to the orientation of the seismogenic fault slip. The back-slope direction and thin ridge amplification effects were documented. These results provide insights on the control of the spatial pattern of earthquake-triggered landslides modified by the synergetic effect of seismogenic faults and topography.

STUDY ON THE SPATIAL PATTERNS OF LAND-USE CHANGE AND ANALYSES OF DRIVING FORCES IN NORTHEASTERN CHINA DURING 1990-2000

Land-use change is an important aspect of global environment change. It is,in a sense, the direct result of human activities influencing our physical environment. Supported bythe dynamic serving system of national resources, including both the environment database and GIStechnology, this paper analyzed the land-use change in northeastern China in the past ten years(1990 ― 2000). It divides northeastern China into five land-use zones based on the dynamic degree(DD) of land-use: woodland/grassland ― arable land conversion zone, dry land ― paddy fieldconversion zone, urban expansion zone, interlocked zone of farming and pasturing, and reclamationand abandoned zone. In the past ten years, land-use change of northeastern China can be generalizedas follows: increase of cropland area was obvious, paddy field and dry land increased by 74. 9 and276. 0 thousand ha respectively; urban area expanded rapidly, area of town and rural residenceincreased by 76. 8 thousand ha; area of forest and grassland decreased sharply with the amount of1399. 0 and 1521. 3 thousand ha respectively; area of water body and unused land increased by 148. 4and 513. 9 thousand ha respectively. Besides a comprehensive analysis of the spatial patterns ofland use, this paper also discusses the driving forces in each land-use dynamic zones. The studyshows that some key biophysical factors affect conspicuously the conversion of different land-usetypes. In this paper, the relationships between land-use conversion and DEM, accumulated temperature(≥10℃) and precipitation were analysed and represented. We conclude that the land-use changes innortheast China resulted from the change of macro social and economic factors and local physicalelements. Rapid population growth and management changes, in some sense, can explain the shaping ofwoodland/grassland ― cropland conversion zone. The conversion from dry land to paddy field in thedry land ― paddy field conversion zone, apart from the physical elements change promoting theexpansion of paddy field, results from two reasons: one is that the implementation of market-economyin China has given fanners the right to decide what they plant and how they plant their crops, theother factor is originated partially from the change of dietary habit with the social and economicdevelopment. The conversion from paddy field to dry land is caused primarily by the shortfall ofirrigation water, which in turn is caused by poor water allocation managed by local governments. Theshaping of the reclamation and abandoned zone is partially due to the lack of environmentprotection consciousness among pioneer settlers. The reason for the conversion from grassland tocropland is the relatively higher profits of farming than that of pasturing in the interlocked zoneof farming and pasturing. In northeastern China, the rapid expansion of built-up areas results fromtwo factors: the first is its small number of towns; the second comes from the huge potential forexpansion of existing towns and cities. It is noticeable that urban expansion in the northeasternChina is characterized by gentle topographic relief and low population density. Physiognomy,transportation and economy exert great influences on the urban expansion.

The temporal and spatial patterns and potential evaluation of China＇s energy resources development

The issue of China＇s energy supply security is not only the key problem which af- fects China＇s rapid and sustainable development in the 21st century, but also the one which international attention focuses on. Based on the notable characteristic of spatial imbalance between energy production and consumption in China, this paper takes the evolution of China＇s primary energy resources development（excluding hydropower） from 1949 to 2007 as the study object, with the aim to sum up the evolutive characteristics and laws of China＇s energy resources development in the past nearly 60 years. Then, based on comprehensive considerations of coal＇s, oil＇s and natural gas＇s basic reserves, qualities, geological conditions production status, and ecological service function of every province, this paper adopts development potential index （DP）to evaluate the development potential of every province＇s en- ergy resources, and divide them into different ranks. Conclusions are drawn as follows： （1） Generally speaking, China＇s gross energy production was increasing in waves from 1949 to 2007. From the viewpoint of spatial patterns, China＇s energy resources development has shown a characteristic of ＂concentrating to the north and central areas, and evolving from linear-shaped to ＂T-shaped＂ pattern gradually since 1949. （2） The structure evolution of China＇s energy resources development in general has shown a trend of ＂coal proportion is dominant but decreasing, while oil and gas proportions are increasing＂ since 1949. （3） At the provincial scale, China＇s energy resources development potential could be divided into large, sub-large, general and small ranks, four in all. In the future, the spatial pattern of China＇s energy production will evolve from ＂T-shaped＂ to ＂R-shaped pattern＂. These conclusions will help to clarify the temporal and spatial characteristics and laws of China＇s energy resources development, and will be beneficial for China to design scientific and rational energy development strategies and plans, coordinate spatial imbalance of energy production and consumption, ensure national energy supply, avoid energy resources waste and disorderly development, and promote regional sustainable development under the globalization back-ground with changeful international energy market.

Characterizing Spatial Patterns of Phenology in Cropland of China Based on Remotely Sensed Data

This study used time-series of global inventory modeling and mapping studies （GIMMS） normalized difference vegetation index （NDVI） datasets at a spatial resolution of 8 km and 15-d interval to investigate the spatial patterns of cropland phenology in China. A smoothing algorithm based on an asymmetric Gaussian function was first performed on NDVI dataset to minimize the effects of anomalous values caused by atmospheric haze and cloud contamination. Subsequent processing for identifying cropping systems and extracting phenological parameters, the starting date of growing season （SGS） and the ending date of growing season （EGS） was based on the smoothed NVDI time-series data. The results showed that the cropping systems in China became complex as moving from north to south of China. Under these cropping systems, the SGS and EGS for the first growing season varied largely over space, and those regions with multiple cropping systems generally presented a significant advanced SGS and EGS than the regions with single cropping patterns. On the contrary, the phenological events of the second growing season including both the SGS and EGS showed little difference between regions. The spatial patterns of cropping systems and phenology in Chinese cropland were highly related to the geophysical environmental factors. Several anthropogenic factors, such as crop variety, cultivation levels, irrigation, and fertilizers, could profoundly influence crop phenological status. How to discriminate the impacts of biophysical forces and anthropogenic drivers on phenological events of cultivation remains a great challenge for further studies.

Spatial Pattern of Rural Settlements in the Upper Reaches of the Minjiang River——a Case Study in Maoxian County, Sichuan

A quantitative analysis of the spatial pattern of rural settlements in the upper reaches of the Minjiang River was made with the major data sources being the relevant ETM image and the national geographical database of China （including contour line, fiver and road） at the scale of 1：250000, and using image interpretation and field investigation to obtain spatial information on rural settlements. The results of the spatial analysis technique of GIS and correlation analysis showed that most settlements （78.2 %） were located in the mountain area at 1500-2700 m altitude, and almost half in the arid valley area. More than 80.0 % of settlements had their slopes above 15°. Most settlements had good access to water resources, roads and communications, and tended to cluster close to the road network rather than the fiver. About half of the rural settlements in the study area were relatively concentrated, while the others were decentralized. Those with higher altitude usually had land with steep slope, inconvenient water and road accesses, and were located far apart from each other. In view of such a situation, further research should be done to make reasonable countermeasures on these settlements for better living conditions and ecosystem stability.

Characterizing Spatial Patterns of Precipitation Based on Corrected TRMM_3B_(43) Data over the Mid Tianshan Mountains of China

The poor distribution of meteorological stations results in a limited understanding of the precipitation pattern in the Tianshan Mountains. The spatial patterns of precipitation over the mid Tianshan Mountains were characterized based on the TRMM 3B43 monthly precipitation data. By comparing satellite estimates with observed data, it shows that TRMM 3B43 data underestimate the precipitation in mountain region. Regression models were developed to improve the TRMM 3B43 data, using geographic location and topographic variables extracted from DEM using GIS technology. The explained variance in observed precipitation was improved from 64% (from TRMM 3B43 products alone) to over 82% and the bias reduced by over 30% when location and topographic variables were added. We recalculated all the TRMM 3B43 monthly precipitation grids for the period 1998 to 2009 using the best regression models, and then studied the variation patterns of precipitation over the mid Tianshan Mountains. The results are well explained by a general understanding of the patterns of precipitation and orographic effects. This indicated that the Tianshan Mountains strongly influences the amount and distribution of precipitation in the region. This is highlighted by the confinement of the precipitation maxima to the windward (northern slope). And complex vertical changes in the provenance and distribution of precipitation, like that a negative increasing rate of precipitation in the vertical direction exists in the north but does not in south. The results have also revealed large gradients and different patterns in seasonal precipitation that are not simply related to elevation, the distribution of precipitation may also be affected by other seasonal factors such as the sources of moist air, wind direction and temperature.