Vegetation indices measure the amount of green vegetation over a given area and can be used to assess vegetation health. A commonly-used vegetation index is the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), which uses the difference between near-infrared (NIR) and red reflectance divided by their sum.

NDVI values range from -1 to 1. Low values of NDVI generally correspond to barren areas of rock, sand, exposed soils, or snow, while higher NDVI values indicate greener vegetation, including forests, croplands, and wetlands. Imaging from NASA’s Earth-observing satellites capture NDVI values from all over the world.

Our data resources include several products useful to the study of vegetation, including NDVI and other common vegetation indices. These datasets help scientists study the impacts of natural disasters, conduct research on agriculture, and learn how plants can manage the effects of extreme heat.