Assessing the
drought extent using multiple indices of LANDSAT data -Case study of Coimbatore
District
Immanual Jeyasingh R. Alex, Suguna Devakumari M., Isaac Manuel R. and Augustine
R.
Disaster Advances; Vol. 18(8); 9-13;
doi: https://doi.org/10.25303/188da09013; (2025)
Abstract
Coimbatore, a significant industrial and agricultural centre in Tamil Nadu, has
experienced drought-related problems over the last 15 years, which have been made
worse by climate change. Using Landsat satellite data, this study performs a spatial-temporal
analysis of the drought in Coimbatore from 2010 to 2024 to evaluate changes in the
frequency, length and intensity of drought occurrences. The vegetation health index
(VHI) was developed to track drought conditions by evaluating data on land surface
temperature (LST) and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI).
The results underscore the worsening drought conditions by showing a significant
loss in vegetation health and an increase in land surface temperatures across the
research period. The VHI demonstrated efficacy in monitoring the onset and intensity
of drought, providing insightful information for regional water management, agricultural
planning and climate adaptation strategies. This research underscores the importance
of remote sensing in understanding and mitigating the impacts of drought in vulnerable
regions like Coimbatore.
