MODIS Vegetation Cover Products for Estimating Tree Cover and Monitoring Change

Accurate estimates of global and regional tree cover are crucial for the study of biogeochemical cycles, ecosystem assessment, and land management. Changes in tree cover are equally important as they represent perturbations of the earth system. We present two new products derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument onboard NASA's Earth Observing System Terra satellite. These products utilize the unique combination of spatial resolution (250m - 1km), daily global image acquisition, radiometric accuracy, and geolocation provided by MODIS. The Vegetation Continuous Fields (VCF) product provides percent cover estimates at 500m spatial resolution for tree cover and vegetation life-form variables. This product is based on a time-series of data which captures the annual phenologic cycle. Prototype products for various regions of the world are presented and compared with other satellite-derived products as well as validation data sets collected on the ground. The Vegetative Cover Conversion (VCC) product utilizes the 250m red and near-infrared bands on MODIS to detect changes in land cover. Changes of interest include flooding, burning, deforestation, urbanization and agricultural expansion. Various regional examples of dramatic land cover change are presented within the context of their impact on tree cover.