EVALUATING CHANGE IN RANGELAND CONDITION USING MULTITEMPORAL AVHRR DATA AND GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM ANALYSIS

摘要

Coarse-scale, multitemporal satellite image data were evaluated as a tool fro detecting variation in vegetation productivity, as a potential indicator of change in rangeland condition in the western U.S. The conterminous U.S. Advanced very Highu Resolution Radiometer (VAHRR) biweekly composite data set was employed using the six-year time series 1989-1994. Normalized Difference vegetation Index (NDVI) image bands for the state of New Mexico were imported into a Geographic Information System (GIS) for analysis with other spatial data sets. Averaged NDVI was calcualted for each year, and a series of regression analyses were performed using one year as the baseline.