Study on Spatio-Temporal Vegetation Cover Changes Based on FVC in Xinjiang, 1998-2009

Fractional Vegetation Cover (FVC) is one of the most important variables in monitoring the changes of terrestrial ecosystems. Based on the Two-end member model, FVC from 1998 to 2009 in Xinjiang was derived from SPOT VEGETATION Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (SPOT-VGT NDVI). The spatio-temporal vegetation changes were analyzed, and the results showed that: (1) vegetation cover has changed between 1998 and 2009 in Xinjiang, increasing during the first nine years of the 21th century after a continuous decrease during the last three years of the 20th century, (2) vegetation cover increased markedly in the oases, and decreased in some forests, with the most notable decrease occurring in grassland.