CONCEPTUAL APPROACH TO APPLICATION OF THE NORMALIZED DIFFERENCE VEGETATION INDEX FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF ARID LAND DEGRADATION

H. G. Kharin and I. G. Gringof

At present, desertification has become a global process which needs a special methodology for assessment to assess and map degraded lands. Remote sensing data obtained from different space platforms are widely used to assess land degradation. NDVI calculated on the basis of NOAA/AVHRR data is one of the effective tools for this purpose. The authors have developed a concept of application of NDVI to study the current status and rate of desertification. The concept includes the selection of a proper season for a space survey, establishment of correlation between NDVI and desertification types, and interpretation of imagery on the basis of landscape zoning of the territory to be mapped. Several examples of NDVI application are also discussed