Monitoring dryland vegetation dynamics from space

Satellite remote sensing provides land managers with unprecedented landscape-scale decision support. Yet, our understanding of how well remote sensing techniques capture critical aspects of ecosystem function remains uncertain. Utilizing a new synthesis of eddy covariance flux tower data for southwestern North America, we present a first assessment of the ability of novel satellite remote sensing vegetation proxies to accurately capture dryland vegetation productivity dynamics. We find that of currently available proxies, solar-induced fluorescence (SIF) most consistently captures seasonal to interannual vegetation productivity dynamics. We finally highlight upcoming satellite missions that will revolutionize our ability to monitor drylands from space.