New insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index, fractional vegetation cover, and leaf area index

Canopy clumping index (CI), fractional vegetation cover (FVC), and leaf area index (LAI) are important vegetation structural variables. Characterization of the spatial and temporal variations of these variables is important for understanding the global vegetation properties, canopy radiative transfe...

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Main Authors: Hongliang Fang, Sijia Li, Yinghui Zhang, Shanshan Wei, Yao Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2021-12-01
Series:Science of Remote Sensing
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666017221000146
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author Hongliang Fang
Sijia Li
Yinghui Zhang
Shanshan Wei
Yao Wang
author_facet Hongliang Fang
Sijia Li
Yinghui Zhang
Shanshan Wei
Yao Wang
author_sort Hongliang Fang
collection DOAJ
description Canopy clumping index (CI), fractional vegetation cover (FVC), and leaf area index (LAI) are important vegetation structural variables. Characterization of the spatial and temporal variations of these variables is important for understanding the global vegetation properties, canopy radiative transfer processes, and land surface modeling studies. This study explores the global CI, FVC, and LAI and their relationships using currently available global products from 2003−2017: CAS-CI (V1.1), GEOV2 FVC, and MODIS LAI (C6.0). The results show that global FVC and LAI have increased, whereas CI has slightly decreased since 2003. CI shows a negative relationship with both FVC and LAI. The specific vegetation cover (SVC), defined as the ratio of FVC to LAI, shows distinct spatial and temporal patterns for different land cover types and has great potential for vegetation characterization and phenology studies. The base and full CIs, calculated as the CI values during leaf emergence and full ground coverage or maximum LAI, respectively, were proposed to determine the seasonal variations in CI for different vegetation types. A global monthly leaf projection function (G(0)) map was generated for the first time to characterize the leaf angular distribution. Overall, this study enhances our understanding of the global CI, FVC, and LAI and provides new insights on characterizing the biophysical properties of global vegetation. These findings are important for canopy reflectance modeling and parameter retrieval studies.
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spelling doaj.art-7e19ebd6c7bd4681932b3c717918b54f2022-12-21T18:03:53ZengElsevierScience of Remote Sensing2666-01722021-12-014100027New insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index, fractional vegetation cover, and leaf area indexHongliang Fang0Sijia Li1Yinghui Zhang2Shanshan Wei3Yao Wang4LREIS, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China; College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China; Corresponding author. LREIS, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China.LREIS, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China; College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, ChinaLREIS, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China; College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, ChinaLREIS, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China; College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, ChinaLREIS, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China; College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, ChinaCanopy clumping index (CI), fractional vegetation cover (FVC), and leaf area index (LAI) are important vegetation structural variables. Characterization of the spatial and temporal variations of these variables is important for understanding the global vegetation properties, canopy radiative transfer processes, and land surface modeling studies. This study explores the global CI, FVC, and LAI and their relationships using currently available global products from 2003−2017: CAS-CI (V1.1), GEOV2 FVC, and MODIS LAI (C6.0). The results show that global FVC and LAI have increased, whereas CI has slightly decreased since 2003. CI shows a negative relationship with both FVC and LAI. The specific vegetation cover (SVC), defined as the ratio of FVC to LAI, shows distinct spatial and temporal patterns for different land cover types and has great potential for vegetation characterization and phenology studies. The base and full CIs, calculated as the CI values during leaf emergence and full ground coverage or maximum LAI, respectively, were proposed to determine the seasonal variations in CI for different vegetation types. A global monthly leaf projection function (G(0)) map was generated for the first time to characterize the leaf angular distribution. Overall, this study enhances our understanding of the global CI, FVC, and LAI and provides new insights on characterizing the biophysical properties of global vegetation. These findings are important for canopy reflectance modeling and parameter retrieval studies.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666017221000146Canopy clumping index (CI)Fractional vegetation cover (FVC)Leaf area index (LAI)Specific vegetation cover (SVC)Base clumping index (BCI)Full clumping index (FCI)
spellingShingle Hongliang Fang
Sijia Li
Yinghui Zhang
Shanshan Wei
Yao Wang
New insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index, fractional vegetation cover, and leaf area index
Science of Remote Sensing
Canopy clumping index (CI)
Fractional vegetation cover (FVC)
Leaf area index (LAI)
Specific vegetation cover (SVC)
Base clumping index (BCI)
Full clumping index (FCI)
title New insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index, fractional vegetation cover, and leaf area index
title_full New insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index, fractional vegetation cover, and leaf area index
title_fullStr New insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index, fractional vegetation cover, and leaf area index
title_full_unstemmed New insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index, fractional vegetation cover, and leaf area index
title_short New insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index, fractional vegetation cover, and leaf area index
title_sort new insights of global vegetation structural properties through an analysis of canopy clumping index fractional vegetation cover and leaf area index
topic Canopy clumping index (CI)
Fractional vegetation cover (FVC)
Leaf area index (LAI)
Specific vegetation cover (SVC)
Base clumping index (BCI)
Full clumping index (FCI)
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666017221000146
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