ESTIMATING INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURE CHANGES IN CHINA USING DMSP – OLS NIGHT-TIME LIGHT DATA DURING 1999–2012

Abstract

The Defense Meteorological Satellite Program’s Operational Linescan System (DMSP-OLS) night-time light imagery has been proved to be a powerful tool to monitor economic development with its relatively high spatial resolution at large scales. Night-time lights caused by human activities derived from DMSP-OLS satellite imagery are widely used in socioeconomic parameter estimations and urbanization monitoring. In this paper, DMSP-OLS night-time stable light data from 1999 to 2012 are utilized to analyze inter-annual variation in GDP of per unit light intensity (RGDP) in China. Furthermore, RGDP was compared with statistical data of the tertiary industry structure for 28 provincial regions. The results show that the provincial RGDP decreased abruptly in 2001–2002, 2008–2009 and 2011–2012, which is consistent with the proportional growth of the tertiary industry in GDP. These results indicate that the changes in RGDP can reflect tertiary industry structural changes in China's province-level regions.