GAULCF (2001-2020)

Changes in urban land cover (ULC) provide critical evidence of urbanization including both urban expansion and internal structural renewal. Existing global urbanization research focused on urban expansion and neglected the dynamic ULC changes occurring inside urban areas. This study addresses this issue by developing a Global Annual Urban Land Cover Fraction (GAULCF) dataset from 2001 to 2020. GAULCF's intensive monitoring of ULC changes during urbanization aids in identifying potential issues in urban development, providing crucial insights and data support for addressing global challenges and achieving sustainable urban development.

城市土地覆盖（Urban Land Cover，缩写ULC）的变化是城市化进程的关键佐证，涵盖城市扩张与内部结构更新两大维度。现有全球城市化相关研究多聚焦于城市扩张，却忽略了城市内部动态变化的ULC情况。本研究针对该问题，构建了2001至2020年的全球年度城市土地覆盖占比（Global Annual Urban Land Cover Fraction，缩写GAULCF）数据集。该数据集对城市化进程中的ULC变化开展精细化监测，可助力识别城市发展中的潜在问题，为应对全球挑战、实现可持续城市发展提供关键研究见解与数据支撑。