Kim et al. (2025) Mapping Forest Climate-Sensitivity Belts in a Mountainous Region of Namyangju, South Korea, Using Satellite-Derived Thermal and Vegetation Phenological Variability

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Identification

• Journal: Forests
• Year: 2025
• Date: 2025-12-22
• Authors: Joon Kim, W. J. Kim, W. K. Lee, Moonil Kim
• DOI: 10.3390/f17010014

Research Groups

Not explicitly mentioned in the provided text. The study focuses on the forested landscape of Namyangju, a mountainous region in central Korea.

Short Summary

This study mapped forest climate sensitivity in a mountainous Korean region by analyzing satellite-derived thermal and vegetation variability. It identified "climate-sensitivity belts" where high-elevation ridges and steep slopes are vulnerable hotspots, while sheltered valley floors act as microclimatic refugia.

Objective

• To investigate how phenological thermal and vegetation variability are organized within a mountainous forested landscape and to derive spatial indicators of forest climate sensitivity directly usable for spatial planning.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Regional scale, focusing on the forested landscape of Namyangju, central Korea, analyzed across 34,123 forest grid cells.
• Temporal Scale: Multi-year period, using monthly observations.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Not applicable; the methodology involved calculating phenological coefficients of variation and applying local clustering analysis.
• Data sources: Monthly, cloud-screened Landsat-8/9 satellite images for land surface temperature (LST) and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI).

Main Results

• Climate-sensitivity hotspots, characterized by simultaneously high LST and NDVI variability (top 5%/10%/20% of distributions), formed continuous belts along high-elevation ridges and steep, dissected slopes.
• Microclimatic refugia, characterized by low LST and NDVI variability, were concentrated in sheltered valley floors.
• The most sensitive belts were predominantly high-elevation conifer stands, indicating that elevation significantly amplifies the coupling between thermal responsiveness and vegetation health.
• Valley-bottom forests demonstrated a stabilizing role, maintaining comparatively constant microclimatic and phenological conditions.
• These spatial patterns were termed "forest climate-sensitivity belts," providing spatially explicit information on forest areas most vulnerable or resilient to climate change.

Contributions

• Provides a novel framework to translate standard satellite observations into spatially explicit, actionable information on forest climate sensitivity for spatial planning.
• Identifies specific "climate-sensitivity belts" (hotspots and refugia) that can guide elevation-aware species selection in afforestation, targeted restoration, fuel-load management in upland zones, and protection of valley refugia.
• Offers a practical and transferable methodology, relying on standard satellite products and transparent calculations, making it adaptable to other seasonal, mountainous regions and updateable with new imagery.

Funding

Not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Kim2025Mapping,
  author = {Kim, Joon and Kim, W. J. and Lee, W. K. and Kim, Moonil},
  title = {Mapping Forest Climate-Sensitivity Belts in a Mountainous Region of Namyangju, South Korea, Using Satellite-Derived Thermal and Vegetation Phenological Variability},
  journal = {Forests},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {10.3390/f17010014},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.3390/f17010014}
}