Remote sensing analysis to map inter-regional spatio-temporal variations of the vegetation in Iceland during 2001–2018

Abstract

Changes in the vegetation of the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions have been used as indicators of the impact and seriousness of climate change. In this study, 342 MODIS NDVI images were used to monitor and assess the variability and long-term changes in the vegetation in Iceland in the period 2001–2018. An insignificant trend in the changes of the vegetation coverage (R = 0.16, p-value = 0.05) was obtained, however, it also resulted that the area with the low values of the NDVI (< 0.6) is decreasing, whereas the area with higher values of the NDVI (> 0.6, mostly forests) is increasing. The NDVI index during the study period rose for the area of about 3260 km2, while it declined for 1635 km2. The results of this study can be used for organizing the strategies preventing climate change and global warming.