China terrestrial ecosystem NPP dataset (2000-2020)

Net primary productivity (NPP) of vegetation is a fundamental metric for assessing carbon sequestration and ecosystem functioning within the global carbon cycle. This research employed a light-use efficiency (LUE) modeling framework, integrating it with statistical analyses including linear trend detection and coefficient of variation, to examine the spatiotemporal patterns of vegetation NPP across China's terrestrial ecosystems from 2000 to 2020. The sustainability of observed trends was further evaluated using the Hurst exponent. Our estimates indicate that the annual total NPP of China's terrestrial vegetation varied between 3.18 and 4.16 Pg C yr⁻¹, exhibiting an overall significant yet fluctuating upward trajectory with a mean rate of 0.035 Pg C yr⁻¹. Stability analysis revealed that approximately 67.74% of the vegetated area maintained high NPP stability during this period. However, Hurst exponent values were predominantly below 0.5, implying that the current increasing trend may not be sustained in the long term. Spatially, NPP demonstrated pronounced heterogeneity, characterized by lower values in the northwestern regions and higher values in the southeastern regions, a pattern broadly demarcated by the Hu Huanyong Zone (Hu Zone). Under conditions of global warming, temperature emerged as the principal climatic driver of the overall NPP increase, while precipitation was the key factor accounting for its spatial variability.