Spatial–temporal landscape pattern change under rapid urbanization

Abstract

Rapid urbanization has been an important social and economic phenomenon in the last 50 years. Our study analyzes the spatial–temporal landscape pattern in the National Capital Region (NCR) of Delhi, one of the most rapid urbanization areas in the world. Delhi metropolitan area and its surrounding satellite cities exhibit a soaring rate of landscape pattern change during the last two decades. A set of landscape metrics with supplementary ecological meaning was chosen to study the changes of landscape pattern in NCR. The results indicate that the rapid urbanization has brought enormous landscape changes in NCR, and consequently, substantial impacts on its landscape pattern. The most “active” landscapes are farmland and impervious surface, as the major landscape change (41.46%) is found in the transition from farmland landscape to impervious-surface landscape. Meanwhile, the landscape pattern is fragmented into a more heterogeneous pattern in both farmland and urban landscape with more irregularly shaped patches during urbanization. Our research confirms the effectiveness and applicability of a combination of remote sensing, geographic information systems, and landscape metrics in revealing spatial–temporal of landscape change throughout rapid growth periods.