<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>In this study, changes in Land Use Land Cover (LULC) have been investigated over the Udhaim River Basin in Iraq by using spectral indices. NDVI, NDBI, NDWI, NDBaI, and CI represent respectively the vegetation, built-up, water bodies, bare-land, and soil crust of LULC. Two different images were acquired for the analysis, namely a Landsat 5 TM image from 1 July 2007 and a Landsat 8 OLI from 5 June 2015, both representing summer conditions. Results show that the percentages of vegetated land and water body areas have decreased. On the contrary, the percentages of built-up, bare land and soil crust areas have increased. The loss of vegetated areas and water body areas is a signal of land degradation leading to desertification, due to the combined effects of climate conditions, water deficit and human activities. Field observation shows that human activities have a significant impact on land degradation.</p></abstract>

In this study, changes in Land Use Land Cover (LULC) have been investigated over the Udhaim River Basin in Iraq by using spectral indices. NDVI, NDBI, NDWI, NDBaI, and CI represent respectively the vegetation, built-up, water bodies, bare-land, and soil crust of LULC. Two different images were acquired for the analysis, namely a Landsat 5 TM image from 1 July 2007 and a Landsat 8 OLI from 5 June 2015, both representing summer conditions. Results show that the percentages of vegetated land and water body areas have decreased. On the contrary, the percentages of built-up, bare land and soil crust areas have increased. The loss of vegetated areas and water body areas is a signal of land degradation leading to desertification, due to the combined effects of climate conditions, water deficit and human activities. Field observation shows that human activities have a significant impact on land degradation.

<bold>Desertification Detected</bold> in the Udhaim River Basin, Iraq Based on Spectral Indices Derived from Remote Sensing Images

Faculty of Geography and Regional Studies

Faculty of Education, Ibn Rushd, Department of Geography

Miscellanea Geographica

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

 in the Udhaim River Basin, Iraq Based on Spectral Indices Derived from Remote Sensing Images

In this study, changes in Land Use Land Cover (LULC) have been investigated over the Udhaim River Basin in Iraq by using spectral indices. NDVI, NDBI, NDWI,...

Desertification Detected in the Udhaim River Basin, Iraq Based on Spectral Indices Derived from Remote Sensing Images

Published Online: Sep 29, 2017

Page range: 124 - 131

Received: Jul 15, 2016

Accepted: Mar 01, 2017

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/mgrsd-2017-0007

Keywords
Desertification, GIS, remote sensing, spectral indices, Iraq

© 2017 Abd Al Salam Mohammed Mail, published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Desertification Detected in the Udhaim River Basin, Iraq Based on Spectral Indices Derived from Remote Sensing Images

Published Online: Sep 29, 2017

Page range: 124 - 131

Received: Jul 15, 2016

Accepted: Mar 01, 2017

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/mgrsd-2017-0007

KeywordsDesertification, GIS, remote sensing, spectral indices, Iraq

© 2017 Abd Al Salam Mohammed Mail, published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Desertification, GIS, remote sensing, spectral indices, Iraq