Response Mechanisms of Ecosystem Pattern and Function to Multi-Dimensional Drought Within the Yellow River Basin Amid Climate Change

Changing environments have intensified drought impacts on terrestrial ecosystems. By integrating meteorological and multi-platform remote sensing observations spanning 2000–2020, this investigation employed spatiotemporal analysis and correlation analysis to investigate multi-dimensional drought characteristics and their impacts on ecosystem patterns and net primary productivity (NPP) across the Yellow River Basin. The meteorological drought center was predominantly located in the midstream region, with the most intense drought persisting for 32 months (January 2000–May 2002) and shifting 419.18 km in 2003. Human activities dominated land use transformation: cropland decreased by 8523.48 km2, built-up land increased by 4550.79 km2, and severely ecologically degraded areas rose to 28.61%. Forestland and cropland showed continuous upward trends in EQI and LUE, while grassland and unused land exhibited severe interannual fluctuations and slow improvement. Land use type determined coupling differences between climatic and ecological indicators. Under human intervention, cropland formed unique correlations: −0.9 between SPEI-12 and CWSI, −0.8 between SPEI-12 and TVDI, and 0.9 between CWSI and TVDI. These findings indicate that human activities critically regulate drought–ecosystem feedbacks, highlighting the need for land use-tailored management approaches.