Forest biomass estimation through NDVI composites.: The role of remotely sensed data to assess Spanish forests as carbon sinks

The present Study is focused on the capabilities of remote sensing data and techniques to help in the monitoring of forest ecosystems as carbon sinks. It will attempt to find statistical relationships between satellite-derived NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) data from SPOT-VEGETATION and NOAA-AVHRR and field measurements from the Spanish National Forest Inventory oil the geographical basis of provinces. Statistically significant relationships were obtained when correlating the aforementioned datasets. These relationships were then used to predict forest biomass at a national level, in order to obtain updated forest information between consecutive National Forest Inventories.