Spectral index-based time series analysis of canopy resistance and resilience in a watershed under intermittent weather changes

Abstract

Understanding the long-term impact of intermittent weather events on diverse forest and plant communities at the canopy level has become a key issue in sustainability science. Unlike a single event, intermittent weather events may exert more physiological and biological pressure on terrestrial vegetative surfaces. The amalgamation of spectral index-based satellite remote sensing information to assess intermittent weather changes in canopy dynamics may help identify phenological shifts of biota in response to external and consecutive disturbances. We conducted this study to assess such impacts of alternating weather changes on grassland, agricultural, deciduous forested, and evergreen forested land uses via remote sensing and to compare the resilience and resistance of canopy under intermittent weather changes in a subtropical watershed. The research findings indicate that deciduous forested and evergreen forested land showed a strong correlation between canopy-level biophysical and biochemical properties driven by land surface temperature. The variation of energy driven by land surface temperature changes the sensitivity levels of resilience in forest land uses, affecting the gross primary productivity.