Satellite remote sensing analysis to monitor desertification processes in the crop-rangeland boundary of Argentina

Remote sensing digital image analysis is applied to monitor desertification processes in central San Luis Province (Argentina), where signs of severe landscape degradation have been observed in the last decades. Two Landsat images, acquired in 1982 and 1992 were used to evaluate the potential of using remote sensing analysis in desertification monitoring. After geometric and radiometric correction of both images, multitemporal comparison techniques were utilized to emphasize areas of greater degradation. Spectral unmixing of the vegetation, water and sand components facilitated the analysis of areas of heterogeneous cover from satellite images. Simple differences between unmixed images of sand or water revealed dune movement, re-vegetation trends and variations in water bodies, as a result of changing rainfall and land use patterns. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.