Please wait a minute...
Journal of Arid Land
Journal of Arid Land  2017, Vol. 9 Issue (3): 394-407    DOI: 10.1007/s40333-017-0016-4     CSTR: 32276.14.s40333-017-0016-4
Orginal Article     
Spatial and temporal variations of vegetation cover and the relationships with climate factors in Inner Mongolia based on GIMMS NDVI3g data
Siqin TONG1,2, Jiquan ZHANG1,*(), Yuhai BAO2, Wurina1, Terigele2, Weilisi3, Lianxiao4
1 School of Environment/Natural Disaster Research Institute, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130117, China
2 College of Geographic Science, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Hohhot 010010, China
3 Graduate School of Engineering, Gifu University, Gifu 501-1193, Japan
4 Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Tsukuba University, Ibaraki 305, Japan
Download: HTML     PDF(1069KB)
Export: BibTeX | EndNote (RIS)      

Abstract  

Variation in vegetation cover in Inner Mongolia has been previously studied by the remote sensing data spanning only one decade. However, spatial and temporal variations in vegetation cover based on the newly released GIMMS NDVI3g data spanning nearly thirty years have yet to be analyzed. In this study, we applied the methods of the maximum value composite (MVC) and Pearson’s correlation coefficient to analyze the variations of vegetation cover in Inner Mongolia based on GIMMS NDVI3g data spanning from 1982 to 2013. Our results indicate that the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) increased at a rate of 0.0003/a during the growing seasons despite of the drier and hotter climate in Inner Mongolia during the past three decades. We also found that vegetation cover in the southern agro-pastoral zone significantly increased, while it significantly decreased in the central Alxa. The variations in vegetation cover were not significant in the eastern and central regions. NDVI is positively correlated with precipitation (r=0.617, P=0.000) and also with air temperature (r=0.425, P=0.015), but the precipitation had a greater effect than the air temperature on the vegetation variations in Inner Mongolia.

Key words： GIMMS NDVI3g      vegetation cover      spatiotemporal variation      climate change     
Received: 18 April 2016      Published: 10 May 2017
Corresponding Authors:
Service
E-mail this article
Add to my bookshelf
Add to citation manager
E-mail Alert
RSS
Articles by authors
Siqin TONG
Jiquan ZHANG
Yuhai BAO
Wurina
Terigele
Weilisi
Lianxiao
Cite this article:

Siqin TONG, Jiquan ZHANG, Yuhai BAO, Wurina, Terigele, Weilisi, Lianxiao. Spatial and temporal variations of vegetation cover and the relationships with climate factors in Inner Mongolia based on GIMMS NDVI3g data. Journal of Arid Land, 2017, 9(3): 394-407.

URL:

http://jal.xjegi.com/10.1007/s40333-017-0016-4     OR     http://jal.xjegi.com/Y2017/V9/I3/394

[1] Bao G, Qin Z H, Bao Y H, et al.2013. Spatial-temporal changes of vegetation cover in Mongolian plateau during 1982-2006.1)Journal of Desert Research, 33(3): 918-927. (in Chinese)
[2] Bao Y, Li X B, Li C, et al.2010. Spatial-temporal distribution characteristics of temperature in Inner Mongolia during 1961-2007. Journal of Arid Land Resources and Environment, 24(12): 80-84. (in Chinese)
[3] Bao Y, Li X B, Huang L M, et al.2011. Spatial-temporal distribution characteristics of precipitation in Inner Mongolia from 1961-2007. Arid Land Geography, 34(1): 52-61. (in Chinese)
[4] Chen L, Wei W, Fu B, et al.2007. Soil and water conservation on the Loess Plateau in China: review and perspective. Progress in Physical Geography, 31(4): 389-403.
[5] Chen X Q, Zheng T.2008. Spatial patterns of aboveground biomass and its climatic attributions in typical steppe of Inner Mongolia. Scientia Geographica Sinica, 28(3): 369-374. (in Chinese)
[6] Chen X Q, Wang H.2009. Spatial and temporal variations of vegetation belts and vegetation cover degrees in Inner Mongolia from 1982 to 2003. Acta Geographica Sinica, 64(1): 84-94. (in Chinese)
[7] Clerici N, Weissteiner C J, Gerard F.2012. Exploring the use of MODIS NDVI-based phenology indicators for classifying forest general habitat categories. Remote Sensing, 4(12): 1781-1803.
[8] Dong Y S, Zhang S, Qi Y C, et al.2000. Fluxes of CO2, N2O and CH4 from a typical temperate grassland in Inner Mongolia and its daily variation. Chinese Science Bulletin, 45(7): 1590-1594.
[9] Douglas E M, Vogel R M, Kroll C N.2000. Trends in floods and low flows in the United States: impact of spatial correlation. Journal of Hydrology, 240(1-2): 90-105.
[10] Franklin S E, He Y H, Pape A, et al.2011. Landsat-comparable land cover maps using ASTER and SPOT images: a case study for large-area mapping programmes. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 32(8): 2185-2205.
[11] Guo Z X, Wang Z M, Song K S, et al.2007. Correlations between forest vegetation NDVI and water/thermal condition in Northeast China forest regions in 1982-2003. Chinese Journal of Ecology, 26(12): 1930-1936. (in Chinese)
[12] Holben B N.1986. Characteristics of maximum-value composite images from temporal AVHRR data. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 7(11): 1417-1434.
[13] Huang Y Z, Wang N A, He T H, et al.2009. Process of historical desertification of Mu Us Desert and relationship between nature and human beings. Scientia Geographica Sinica, 29(2): 206-211. (in Chinese)
[14] Jiang N, Zhu W Q, Zheng Z T, et al.2013. A comparative analysis between GIMSS NDVIg and NDVI3g for monitoring vegetation activity change in the Northern Hemisphere during 1982-2008. Remote Sensing, 5(8): 4031-4044.
[15] Li X H, Shi Q D, Guo J, et al.2009. The response of NDVI to climate variability in northwest arid area of China from 1981 to 2001. Journal of Arid Land Resources and Environment, 23(2): 12-16. (in Chinese)
[16] Liu J H, Gao J X.2009. Effects of climate and land use change on the changes of NPP in the farming-pastoral ecotone of Northern China. Resources Science, 31(3): 493-500. (in Chinese)
[17] Liu Y, Li Y, Li S C, et al.2015. Spatial and temporal patterns of global NDVI trends: correlations with climate and human factors. Remote Sensing, 7(10): 13233-13250.
[18] Liu Y B, Ju W M, Chen J M, et al.2012. Spatial and temporal variations of forest LAI in China during 2000-2010. Chinese Science Bulletin, 57(22): 2846-2856.
[19] Ma W Y, He L, Zhao C Y.2015. Desertification dynamics in Alxa League over the period of 2000-2012. Journal of Lanzhou University (Natural Science), 51(1): 55-60, 78. (in Chinese)
[20] Mu S J, Li J L, Chen Y Z, et al.2012. Spatial differences of variations of vegetation coverage in Inner Mongolia during 2001-2010. Acta Geographica Sinica, 67(9): 1255-1268. (in Chinese)
[21] Na Y T.2015. Drought characteristics in Inner Mongolia based on the SPI index in the last 50 years. Journal of Arid Land Resources and Environment, 29(5): 161-166. (in Chinese)
[22] Niu J M.2000. Relationship between main vegetation types and climatic factors in Inner Mongolia. Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology, 11(1): 47-52. (in Chinese)
[23] Partal T, Kahya E.2006. Trend analysis in Turkish precipitation data. Hydrological Processes, 20(9): 2011-2026.
[24] Piao S L, Fang J Y, Zhou L M, et al.2003. Interannual variations of monthly and seasonal normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) in China from 1982 to 1999. Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres, 108(D14): 4401.
[25] Piao S L, Mohammat A, Fang J Y, et al.2006. NDVI-based increase in growth of temperate grasslands and its responses to climate changes in China. Global Environmental Change, 16(4): 340-348.
[26] Sellers P J, Meeson B W, Hall F G, et al.1995. Remote sensing of the land surface for studies of global change: models-algorithms-experiments. Remote Sensing of Environment, 51(1): 3-26.
[27] Shi Z J, Gao J X, Xu L H, et al.2011. Effect of vegetation on changes of temperature and precipitation in Inner Mongolia, China. Ecology and Environmental Sciences, 20(11): 1594-1601. (in Chinese)
[28] Sun Y L, Guo P, Yan X D, et al.2010. Dynamics of vegetation cover and its relationship with climate change and human activities in Inner Mongolia. Journal of Natural Resources, 25(3): 407-414. (in Chinese)
[29] Tang H, Li Z W, Zhu Z L, et al.2015. Variability and climate change trend in vegetation phenology of recent decades in the Greater Khingan Mountain area, Northeastern China. Remote Sensing, 7(9): 11914-11932.
[30] Tian H J, Cao C X, Chen W, et al.2015. Response of vegetation activity dynamic to climatic change and ecological restoration programs in Inner Mongolia from 2000 to 2012. Ecological Engineering, 82: 276-289.
[31] Tucker C J, Townshend J R G, Goff T E.1985. African land-cover classification using satellite data. Science, 227(4685): 369-375.
[32] Tucker C J, Fung I Y, Keeling C D, et al.1986. Relationship between atmospheric CO2 variations and a satellite-derived vegetation index. Nature, 319(6050): 195-199.
[33] Tucker C J, Pinzon J E, Brown M E, et al.2005. An extended AVHRR 8-km NDVI dataset compatible with MODIS and SPOT vegetation NDVI data. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 26(20): 4485-4498.
[34] Wang J, Li B L, Yu W L.2012. Analysis of vegetation trend and their causes during recent 30 years in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Journal of Arid Land Resources and Environment, 26(2): 132-138. (in Chinese)
[35] Wang Z S, Huang M, Yan H M, et al.2015. Spatiotemporal variation of vegetation and climate impacts on it in Ghana from 1982 to 2006. Journal of Geo-Information Science, 17(1): 78-85.
[36] Xin L J, Li X B, Tan M H, et al.2015. Spatial and temporal variability in grassland Net Primary Production (NPP) in the Inner Mongolia sand-control belt from 2000 to 2010. Arid Zone Research, 32(3): 585-591. (in Chinese)
[37] Xu X, Li X B, Liang H W, et al.2010. Change in vegetation coverage and its relationships with climatic factors in temperate steppe, Inner Mongolia. Acta Ecologica Sinica, 30(14): 3733-3743. (in Chinese)
[38] Xue Z C, Gao H Y, Peng T, et al.2011. Application of spectral reflectance on research of plant eco-physiology. Plant Physiology Journal, 47(4): 313-320.
[39] Yang Q, Wang T T, Chen H, et al.2015. Characteristics of vegetation cover change in Xilin Gol League based on MODIS EVI data. Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering, 31(22): 191-198. (in Chinese)
[40] Zhang B P, Zhang X Q, Yao Y H, et al.2009. Desertification and strategic policies in the Alxa region of Inner Mongolia. Arid Zone Research, 26(4): 453-459. (in Chinese)
[41] Zhang X B, Vincent L A, Hogg W D, et al.2000. Temperature and precipitation trends in Canada during the 20th century. Atmosphere-Ocean, 38(3): 395-429.
[42] Zhou L M, Tucker C J, Kaufmann R K, et al.2001. Variations in northern vegetation activity inferred from satellite data of vegetation index during 1981 to 1999. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 106(D17): 20069-20083.
[1] Xijiri, ZHOU Ruiping, BAO Baorong, Burenjirigala . Spatiotemporal patterns and drivers of cultivated land conversion in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, northern China[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(9): 1197-1213.
[2] CHEN Zhuo, SHAO Minghao, HU Zihao, GAO Xin, LEI Jiaqiang. Potential distribution of Haloxylon ammodendron in Central Asia under climate change[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(9): 1255-1269.
[3] SUN Chao, BAI Xuelian, WANG Xinping, ZHAO Wenzhi, WEI Lemin. Response of vegetation variation to climate change and human activities in the Shiyang River Basin of China during 2001-2022[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(8): 1044-1061.
[4] YAN Yujie, CHENG Yiben, XIN Zhiming, ZHOU Junyu, ZHOU Mengyao, WANG Xiaoyu. Impacts of climate change and human activities on vegetation dynamics on the Mongolian Plateau, East Asia from 2000 to 2023[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(8): 1062-1079.
[5] YANG Jianhua, LI Yaqian, ZHOU Lei, ZHANG Zhenqing, ZHOU Hongkui, WU Jianjun. Effects of temperature and precipitation on drought trends in Xinjiang, China[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(8): 1098-1117.
[6] HAN Qifei, XU Wei, LI Chaofan. Effects of nitrogen deposition on the carbon budget and water stress in Central Asia under climate change[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(8): 1118-1129.
[7] WANG Tongxia, CHEN Fulong, LONG Aihua, ZHANG Zhengyong, HE Chaofei, LYU Tingbo, LIU Bo, HUANG Yanhao. Glacier area change and its impact on runoff in the Manas River Basin, Northwest China from 2000 to 2020[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(7): 877-894.
[8] DU Lan, TIAN Shengchuan, ZHAO Nan, ZHANG Bin, MU Xiaohan, TANG Lisong, ZHENG Xinjun, LI Yan. Climate and topography regulate the spatial pattern of soil salinization and its effects on shrub community structure in Northwest China[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(7): 925-942.
[9] Haq S MARIFATUL, Darwish MOHAMMED, Waheed MUHAMMAD, Kumar MANOJ, Siddiqui H MANZER, Bussmann W RAINER. Predicting potential invasion risks of Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit in the arid area of Saudi Arabia[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(7): 983-999.
[10] Seyed Morteza MOUSAVI, Hossein BABAZADEH, Mahdi SARAI-TABRIZI, Amir KHOSROJERDI. Assessment of rehabilitation strategies for lakes affected by anthropogenic and climatic changes: A case study of the Urmia Lake, Iran[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(6): 752-767.
[11] LI Chuanhua, ZHANG Liang, WANG Hongjie, PENG Lixiao, YIN Peng, MIAO Peidong. Influence of vapor pressure deficit on vegetation growth in China[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(6): 779-797.
[12] LU Haitian, ZHAO Ruifeng, ZHAO Liu, LIU Jiaxin, LYU Binyang, YANG Xinyue. Impact of climate change and human activities on the spatiotemporal dynamics of surface water area in Gansu Province, China[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(6): 798-815.
[13] YANG Zhiwei, CHEN Rensheng, LIU Zhangwen, ZHAO Yanni, LIU Yiwen, WU Wentong. Spatiotemporal variability of rain-on-snow events in the arid region of Northwest China[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(4): 483-499.
[14] ZHANG Mingyu, CAO Yu, ZHANG Zhengyong, ZHANG Xueying, LIU Lin, CHEN Hongjin, GAO Yu, YU Fengchen, LIU Xinyi. Spatiotemporal variation of land surface temperature and its driving factors in Xinjiang, China[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(3): 373-395.
[15] WANG Baoliang, WANG Hongxiang, JIAO Xuyang, HUANG Lintong, CHEN Hao, GUO Wenxian. Runoff change in the Yellow River Basin of China from 1960 to 2020 and its driving factors[J]. Journal of Arid Land, 2024, 16(2): 168-194.