Climatic change impact on growing season in Fennoscandia studied by a time series of NOAA AVHRR NDVI data

The GIMMS NDVI dataset was used to investigate regional climatic change impact on the length of the growing season in Fennoscandia, Denmark and Kola Peninsula. In general, results show a pattern according to vegetation zones (mostly north-south direction) and vegetation belts (altitude), and partly according to vegetation sections (mostly east-west direction in Fennoscandia). The results show that the boreal spring is delayed in the alpine belts and the northern boreal zone. The strongest delay occurred in the most continental section of the northern boreal zone. In the entire boreonemoral and nemoral zone, which occupy the southern part of Fennoscandia, spring starts considerably earlier. In the most oceanic section, the coastline of western Norway, spring also starts earlier. At the same time autumn is delayed in the whole area except in the most continental section of northern Fennoscandia. This also means that the growing season is prolonged for the whole area, except the northern continental section.