Temporal analysis of forest activity using remote sensing and DEM

Vegetation in forest is influenced by elevation and topographical features (e.g. temperature, sunshine, slope direction, etc.). In mountain areas vegetation aspects are different with elevation and slope direction. But it is difficult to study the relationship between vegetation in such areas by field work. The technology which makes it possible is satellite remote sensing. It enables the research of forest vegetation activity by multispectral data from satellite. In combination with a DEM (Digital Elevation Model) one can research the change of forest activity by elevation. Furthermore, it is possible to calculate the direction of each slope and a degree of the slope from the DEM. In this study, the temporal change of forest activity around Mt. Hakusan, Japan, with slope direction was analyzed using Landsat TM data