Mapping monsoonal soil wetness regions from multi‐temporal VEGETATION dataset

Abstract

Using the temporal and multi‐spectral signature of the soil wetness regions formed by monsoon storms in Indian river catchments, an analysis of time‐series VEGETATION images is proposed here to map the wetness regions and their spatial distribution for 1999, 2000 and 2001. The spatial distribution of the mapped regions was then compared with the corresponding distribution of topographic index range in 41 watersheds of the River Mahanadi. The comparison shows that there was a significant relationship (n = 41, r ² = 0.65) between the two. Extending the same analysis for all other Indian river catchments, similar relationships were obtained, except in the Brahmaputra catchment, where the temporal and spatial patterns of monsoon storms are different from those of the other river catchments.