Published in Journal of Young Scientist, Vol.I
Written by Casian-George NEAŢĂ
Presently, drought can be identified and monitored using a wide range of remote sensing methods. Over the last years, drought conditions were reported in several areas located in south of the country, in Giurgiu, Teleorman, Olt and Dolj counties. This study aims at identifying the drought affected areas and the effects of the drought on vegetation, based on satellite data acquired by Landsat. Both test sites covering the counties mentioned before are of major importance for agriculture. It is estimated that the agricultural area of the Giurgiu County was of approximately 238,000 hectares in 2012. The Romanian Plain has a rich and fertile soil that is very suitable for the cultivation of grain, sunflower, and technical and medicinal plants. Dolj County is located in the most fertile region of the Oltenia Plain benefiting by favorable climatic and soil conditions. Its total arable area is about 488,000 hectares, according to 2009 statistics. The county is covered in the southern part by large sandy areas and an impressive number of lakes formed either by flooding or precipitation accumulation. Remote sensing is an important tool for drought monitoring due to its capacity to observe large geographic areas using frequent acquisitions. Moreover, remote sensing offers the possibility to study archive satellite data and therefore to make better predictions for the future. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), together with information on temperature and precipitation were used for estimating the drought index. In conclusion, the early identification of drought is important for mitigation efforts, while the monitoring of the drought effects contributes to more accurate crop yield estimations.
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