The satellite-based vegetation condition index(VCI) and temperature condition index(TCI) have been used extensively for drought detection and tracking, the assessment of weather impacts on vegetation and evaluation of...The satellite-based vegetation condition index(VCI) and temperature condition index(TCI) have been used extensively for drought detection and tracking, the assessment of weather impacts on vegetation and evaluation of the health and productivity of vegetation. In this study, in order to detect and monitor the growth condition of vegetation, we have collected data on vegetation indices and land surface temperature derived from MODIS(2001-2012) and defined a vegetation health index(VHI) based on VCI and TCI for assessing vegetation health condition in the Three Gorges Area, China(TGA). The results of the study show that temporal and spatial characteristics of vegetation health condition can be detected, tracked and mapped by the VHI index. In most parts of the TGA, the vegetation health condition showed an overall increasing trend during the study period, especially in Wulong, Fengdu, Shizhu and other regions located in the midstream sections of the Three Gorges Reservoir. In addition, the four studied vegetation types all showed clear increasing trends during the study period. The increasing trend in the vegetation health condition shows a strong positive correlation with topographical slope and altitude(below 500 m). Over the seasons, this trend is strongest in autumn, followed by spring. However, the correlations between vegetation health condition and climatic factors are more frequently significant in summer and winter than in autumn and spring. The vegetation health condition has been low in 2006 and 2011. This finding is consistent with the extreme weather conditions in those two years. However, only in the summer is vegetation health condition significantly correlated with three climatic factors in most of the study area. This result implies that vegetation growth may show a lagged response to climatic factors and may also be affected by human activities, including agricultural activities, industrial activities and other economic activities.展开更多
基金Natural Science Foundation Project of CQ CSTC(CSTC2011jj A00025)
文摘The satellite-based vegetation condition index(VCI) and temperature condition index(TCI) have been used extensively for drought detection and tracking, the assessment of weather impacts on vegetation and evaluation of the health and productivity of vegetation. In this study, in order to detect and monitor the growth condition of vegetation, we have collected data on vegetation indices and land surface temperature derived from MODIS(2001-2012) and defined a vegetation health index(VHI) based on VCI and TCI for assessing vegetation health condition in the Three Gorges Area, China(TGA). The results of the study show that temporal and spatial characteristics of vegetation health condition can be detected, tracked and mapped by the VHI index. In most parts of the TGA, the vegetation health condition showed an overall increasing trend during the study period, especially in Wulong, Fengdu, Shizhu and other regions located in the midstream sections of the Three Gorges Reservoir. In addition, the four studied vegetation types all showed clear increasing trends during the study period. The increasing trend in the vegetation health condition shows a strong positive correlation with topographical slope and altitude(below 500 m). Over the seasons, this trend is strongest in autumn, followed by spring. However, the correlations between vegetation health condition and climatic factors are more frequently significant in summer and winter than in autumn and spring. The vegetation health condition has been low in 2006 and 2011. This finding is consistent with the extreme weather conditions in those two years. However, only in the summer is vegetation health condition significantly correlated with three climatic factors in most of the study area. This result implies that vegetation growth may show a lagged response to climatic factors and may also be affected by human activities, including agricultural activities, industrial activities and other economic activities.
