A subset of each of the Landsat (TM) and (ETM+) images acquired in August 1987, and August 2001, respectively, were used for mapping land degradation and change detection purposes in the central parts of Jordan. The two multi-temporal images were geometrically and radiometrically calibrated to each other and used as input to an automatic change detection procedure. Color composites were generated for analyses using the TM bands -2, -3, -4 and -2, -4, -7. To map changes that had occurred between the two dates six spectral bands of both TM and ETM+ digital data (with the thermal bands being excluded) were individually used as input for supervised classification purpose. This paper describes a suite of techniques that have been used to develop an operational approach, which will ensure high accuracy and compatibly. Monitoring of the land degradation, particularly in vegetation coverage, had been done using NDVI image differencing. The histogram of difference image shows that unchanged pixels were centered around the mean, the changed pixels were located in the tail regions on either side. The difference image indicated that significant negative changes in land use/cover have occurred between 1987 and 2001.
Change detection results of central Jordan revealed that the decline of cultivated areas and cropland/grassland areas is clearly the result of accelerated expansion through the process of urbanization, which has negative effects on both agricultural lands and water basins, and is therefore strictly land degradation.