Distinguishing Land Change from Natural Variability and Uncertainty in Central Mexico with MODIS EVI, TRMM Precipitation, and MODIS LST Data

Abstract

Precipitation and temperature enact variable influences on vegetation, impacting the type and condition of land cover, as well as the assessment of change over broad landscapes. Separating the influence of vegetative variability independent and discrete land cover change remains a major challenge to landscape change assessments. The heterogeneous Lerma-Chapala-Santiago watershed of central Mexico exemplifies both natural and anthropogenic forces enacting variability and change on the landscape. This study employed a time series of Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) composites from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectoradiometer (MODIS) for 2001-2007 and per-pixel multiple linear regressions in order to model changes in EVI as a function of precipitation, temperature, and elevation. Over the seven-year period, 59.1% of the variability in EVI was explained by variability in the independent variables, with highest model performance among changing and heterogeneous land cover types, while intact forest cover demonstrated the greatest resistance to changes in temperature and precipitation. Model results were compared to an independent change uncertainty assessment, and selected regional samples of change confusion and natural variability give insight to common problems afflicting land change analyses.

Satellite-Observed Thermal Anomalies and Deformation Patterns Associated to the 2021, Central Crete Seismic Sequence

“…Several satellite sensors, which have channels in the infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, can monitor Earth's thermal field and generate a Land Surface Temperature (LST) product with variable spatiotemporal resolution depending on the satellite/sensor system chosen [6][7][8][9]. Therefore, LST can be used as a critical guide to the understanding of land surface processes at various scales [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] and environments, especially in Remote Sens. 2022, 14, 3413 2 of 20 areas with a variability in geophysical parameters such as vegetation, topography, geology and geomorphometry.…”

Robust Satellite Techniques for mapping thermal anomalies possibly related to seismic activity of March 2021, Thessaly Earthquakes.

“…As a result, LST can greatly contribute to the understanding of land surface processes in various scales (from local to global) (Brunsell and Gillies, 2003;Anderson and Kustas, 2008;Kustas and Anderson, 2009;Karnieli et al, 2010;Ganas et al, 2010;Keramitsoglou et al, 2011;Zhang et al, 2014;Christman et al, 2016;Scambos et al, 2018;Eleftheriou et al, 2016b;Aguilar-Lome et al, 2019;Athanasiadou et al,2020;Peleli et al, 2021).…”

Efectos de la variabilidad de la precipitación en la fenología del café: caso zona cafetalera Xalapa-Coatepec, Veracruz, Mex.

“…Sin embargo, cambios drásticos en la cantidad, intensidad y frecuencia de eventos de precipitación influyen en la disponibilidad de agua para el desarrollo de los cultivos (Zarazúa, et al, 2014). Christman et al (2016) y De Beurs y Henebry ( 2005) señalan efectos en la duración y el inicio de las temporadas de los cultivos en todo el mundo debido a la variabilidad interanual del clima. La percepción de dicha variabilidad es cada vez más evidente para los productores que han detectado cambios en el inicio y patrón de las lluvias, lo que les ha permitido adoptar estrategias para mitigar sus efectos (Chengappa, et al, 2017).…”