BOREAS AFM-12 1-km AVHRR Seasonal Land Cover Classification

BOREAS AFM-12 provides a regional land cover classification for a 619-km by 821-km subset of the BOREAS study region. The dataset was created by analyzing multitemporal 1-km AVHRR data from NOAA 11, using monthly NDVI composites from April to September 1992, and validated with Landsat TM imagery and extensive ground observations. It was produced by ORNL_CLOUD and is available on multiple platforms.

Use Cases

• Validating coarse-resolution land cover models using the 1-km AVHRR classification.
• Analyzing seasonal vegetation patterns using the monthly NDVI composites from April-September 1992.
• Comparing land cover classifications by cross-referencing the AVHRR product with Landsat TM classifications for the NSA and SSA.
• Mapping regional land cover types such as forests, wetlands, and water bodies within the BOREAS region.

Strengths

• Validation used extensive ground data with GPS georeferencing and low-level aerial flight observations.
• Methodology is based on a proven approach developed by Loveland et al. (1991) for 1-km AVHRR land cover mapping.
• The classification covers a large, specific study area of 619-km by 821-km within the BOREAS region.

Limitations

• Conflicting metadata exists for the last updated date (1992-09-30 vs. 2026-03-13).
• Specific column names, row counts, and dataset size are unknown across all sources.
• The license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without further detail.

Provenance

Source

ORNL_CLOUD

Collection Method

Unsupervised image cluster analysis of monthly AVHRR NDVI composites, validated with Landsat TM imagery and ground observations.

Time Range

April 1992 to September 1992

Freshness

2026-03-13 07:30:57.412674

Geography

A 619-km by 821-km subset within the 1,000-km by 1,000-km BOREAS region, including the Northern and Southern Study Areas (NSA/SSA).