Analysis of vegetation dynamics in middle east area during 2002–2013 in relation to the 2007–2009 drought episode

The drought episode that struck Middle East countries in 2007-2009 was the worst one hitting the region in more than 60 years. An analysis of rainfall and vegetation dynamics over the temporal range covering 11 hydrological seasons from September 2002 to August 2013 has been carried out by using time series of satellite data from TRMM and MODIS platforms, over the study area covering the so called Fertile Crescent: spanning from southern Turkey, Syria, and Jordan, to Iraq and western Iran. The results of this analysis, along with supportive information about surface water reserves drawn from satellite radar altimetry suggest that the intensification of activities in new agricultural areas in southern Turkey, steadily developed during the last decade, contributed to the sensible deplenishment of water resources available over the basin.