4.1. Phenology
Initially clustering of five classes was applied for the separation of the total Indus Basin into (i) water/ice, (ii) barren, (iii) shrubland/ grassland, (iv) natural vegetation (forests) and (v) cropland. The division of the basin into these five classes provided a first understanding of spatial variability in land cover (Table 1). The class “Barren” appears to be a major class for all countries. The areal extent is followed by the class “croplands” for Pakistan and India. Afghanistan has a small area under “croplands”, while it is negligible in China. The area in the Chinese part of Indus Basin is located at a higher altitude where no agriculture is possible. The Chinese part is mostly comprises of “water/ice” and “barren” land covers. By absence of vegetation and the dynamics of snow and snowmelt processes, it is not straightforward to differentiate between “water/ice” and “barren” with the information used.