Response of vegetation to temperature and precipitation in Xinjiang during the period of 1998-2009

Abstract

In this paper, 10-day spatio-temporal response of vegetation to the change of temperature and precipitation in spring, summer, autumn and whole year during the period of 1998―2009 was analyzed based on the data of SPOT VEGETATION-NDVI and 10-day average temperature or precipitation from 54 meteorological stations in Xinjiang. The results show that the response of 10-day NDVI to temperature was more significant than that to precipitation, and the maximal response of vegetation to temperature and precipitation lagged for two 10-day periods. Seasonally, the effect of temperature and precipitation on vegetation NDVI was most marked in autumn, then in spring, and it was not significant in summer. The response of vegetation to 10-day change of meteorological factors was positive with a long affecting duration in spring, and it had a relatively short affecting duration in autumn and summer. Spatially, the 10-day maximal response of NDVI to temperature in northern Xinjiang was higher than that in southern Xinjiang. The correlation between the 10-day NDVI in whole year and the temperature in the 0-8 10-day period was significantly higher than that between the annual NDVI and the annual temperature at all meteorological stations; the interannual change of NDVI was accordant well with the change of annual precipitation. However, the effect of precipitation within a year on NDVI was not strong. The results indicated that interannual change of temperature was not the dominant factor affecting the change of vegetation NDVI in Xinjiang, but the decrease of annual precipitation was the main factor resulting in the fluctuation of vegetation coverage. Ten-day average temperature was an important factor to promote vegetation growth in Xinjiang within a year, but the effect of precipitation on vegetation growth within a year was not strong.