The potential impact of the COVID-19 on the corn growth and yield of the United States

Abstract:

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused tremendous negative effects in all countries worldwide. The future of the economy and human society remains unclear as there are no effective means to powerfully make this epidemic under control at the current stage. So far, we know little of its impacts on agriculture productivity, which is the driver for socio-economic development and provides food and energy for our daily needs. This study investigates the possible changes in corn growth and corn yield of the United States. An improved Harmonic Analysis of Time Series (HANTS) algorithm is applied to the major cornfield in the states using a long-term time series of 30-m remotely-sensed images. The NDVI trajectory of corn is decomposed to identify the greening date, possible peak date, and mature date under the influence of COVID-19. An inter-annual comparison among these statistics is performed to quantify the difference of the significant dates during corn growth in 2020. The outcomes can provide numerical evidence and an explicit answer to the question - whether COVID-19 pandemic has changed the corn growth of the United States.