Satellite-observed greenness expansion across Antarctica

Abstract Polar ecosystems are reshaping rapidly in the 21st century, yet Antarctica's continent-wide terrestrial vegetation response remains unclear. Here, using 22 years (2002-2023) of daily MODIS products, we provide the first continent-wide, multi-decadal record of spectral greenness. The area of satellite product exhibiting greenness increased by more than 50%, from 7,356 to 11,219 km², and mean seasonal detection span lengthened from 22.6 to 32.4 days. Both trends were significant across all three major Antarctic regions. Water availability and ultraviolet radiation together account for 77% of modeled continental climate contributions, while temperature contributes less. Modeled regional contributions diverge sharply: water dominates in East Antarctica, ultraviolet-radiation on the Antarctic Peninsula, and ultraviolet-radiation and temperature jointly in West Antarctica. These results reveal shared spatial and seasonal greening across contrasting Antarctic changing environments.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Research Square
Published
2026-11-09
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-11568957/v1
Primary Topic
Remote Sensing in Agriculture
Type
preprint
Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
NOV
preprint

Satellite-observed greenness expansion across Antarctica

Becky A. Ball, Yanlan Liu, Hangkai You, Nicolas Lauret et al.
Research Square
Remote Sensing in Agriculture
preprint

Satellite-observed greenness expansion across Antarctica

Becky A. Ball, Yanlan Liu, Hangkai You, Nicolas Lauret, Fa Li, Bilgecan Şen, Dalei Hao, Abhishek Chatterjee, Fujiang Ji, Christian Che‐Castaldo, Matthew A. Lazzara, Min Chen, Yingjie Wang, Taejin Park, Eric Chavanon, Zhuosen Wang
preprint en

Abstract

Abstract Polar ecosystems are reshaping rapidly in the 21st century, yet Antarctica's continent-wide terrestrial vegetation response remains unclear. Here, using 22 years (2002-2023) of daily MODIS products, we provide the first continent-wide, multi-decadal record of spectral greenness. The area of satellite product exhibiting greenness increased by more than 50%, from 7,356 to 11,219 km², and mean seasonal detection span lengthened from 22.6 to 32.4 days. Both trends were significant across all three major Antarctic regions. Water availability and ultraviolet radiation together account for 77% of modeled continental climate contributions, while temperature contributes less. Modeled regional contributions diverge sharply: water dominates in East Antarctica, ultraviolet-radiation on the Antarctic Peninsula, and ultraviolet-radiation and temperature jointly in West Antarctica. These results reveal shared spatial and seasonal greening across contrasting Antarctic changing environments.

Research Square
Ames Research Center (US), United States Geological Survey (US), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), Goddard Space Flight Center (US), University of Wisconsin–Madison (US), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (US), University of California, Los Angeles (US), Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (FR), Schmidt Sciences (US), Université de Toulouse (FR), Arizona State University (US), Stony Brook University (US), The University of Texas at Austin (US)
Remote Sensing in Agriculture
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.

Laika access coming soon