GNDVI
Green Normalized Difference Vegetation Index. Similar to NDVI but uses the green band instead of the red band. More sensitive to chlorophyll concentration, making it useful for assessing vegetation vigor and nitrogen status in crops.
Formula
GNDVI = (NIR - Green) / (NIR + Green)Overview
The Green NDVI (GNDVI) replaces NDVI's red band with the green band, making it significantly more sensitive to chlorophyll concentration. Proposed by Gitelson, Kaufman, and Merzylak in 1996, GNDVI is particularly valuable for detecting nitrogen status and photosynthetic capacity in crops.
How It Works
GNDVI = (NIR − Green) / (NIR + Green). On Sentinel-2: (B8 − B3) / (B8 + B3). The green band (500–570 nm) has intermediate chlorophyll absorption — as chlorophyll increases, green reflectance decreases gradually and continuously, unlike red reflectance which saturates quickly. This gives GNDVI a higher saturation point than NDVI.
Key Facts
- Published by Gitelson et al. (1996).
- More sensitive to chlorophyll variation than NDVI, especially at moderate-to-high biomass.
- On Sentinel-2, both bands (B8 NIR, B3 Green) are at full 10 m resolution.
- Widely used in precision agriculture for nitrogen management.
Applications
Nitrogen Status Assessment
Chlorophyll correlates with leaf nitrogen, making GNDVI effective for detecting nitrogen deficiency.
Precision Agriculture
Generating within-field management zones for optimized fertilizer and water application.
Dense Canopy Monitoring
Differentiating plant vigor where NDVI has saturated but GNDVI still responds.
Limitations & Considerations
Still saturates in very dense canopies. Green band is more sensitive to atmospheric scattering than red. Soil background effects not explicitly accounted for. Chlorophyll-GNDVI relationship is species-dependent.
History & Background
Introduced in 1996, demonstrating the green band is five times more sensitive to chlorophyll variation than red. Gained traction in precision agriculture during the 2000s-2010s with drone and satellite platforms.
Related Terms
Analyze GNDVI data with LYRASENSE
Use our agentic notebook environment to work with satellite data and compute indices like GNDVI — no setup required.