## 3 Results
### Analyzing the Spatial Pattern of NDBI and LST's Hot and Cold Spots  
Table 6 lists the areas of NDBI and LST's hot and cold spots, and their variations throughout the 30 years of the study time span. The spatial distribution of hot, cold, and non-significant spots for NDBI and LST is depicted in Figures 6a-d and 7a-d. Generally, there was a moderate to high spatial autocorrelation (clustering) and statistical significance at \(p<0.05\) for both NDBI and the LST during the 30 years. The Moran's \(I\) for the NDBI ranged from 0.322 to 0.486, while the LST ranged from 0.604 to 0.639 (Table 6).  
High NDBI and LST values were categorized as hot spots, whereas small values were categorized as cold spot (Figures 6 and 7). Hot spots of NDBI with 99% confidence ranged from 19.5% to 26.5% (Table 6). On the other hand, cold spots with 99% confidence ranged from 19% to 30.7%. The class of non-significant spots covered the largest area (35.2%) in 2000, versus the smallest (30.6%) in 1990. Regarding the analysis of LST's hot spots, hot spots achieved their largest area (27.8%) in 2010 versus their lowest (25%) in 2020, though cold spots reached their maximum area (35.1%) in 2020 versus their lowest (33.9%) in 2000, with a 99% confidence level for all. Non-significant spot areas ranged from 18.3% to 19.7% over the study period.  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{l c c c c c c c c} \hline \hline \multirow{2}{*}{**Spot Type**} & \multicolumn{5}{c}{**NDBI**} & \multicolumn{5}{c}{**LST**} \\ \cline{2-10}  & **1990** & **2000** & **2010** & **2020** & **1990** & **2000** & **2010** & **2020** \\ \hline Cold Spot—99\% Confidence & 24.3 & 22.3 & 30.7 & 19 & 34.0 & 33.9 & 35.3 & 35.1 \\ Cold Spot—95\% Confidence & 6.9 & 5.7 & 6.9 & 8.2 & 4.9 & 3.7 & 5.6 & 7.1 \\ Cold Spot—90\% Confidence & 6.6 & 6.3 & 5.4 & 9.3 & 4.7 & 3.6 & 5.6 & 5.7 \\ Not Significant & 30.6 & 35.2 & 21.4 & 31.9 & 19.2 & 19.7 & 18.3 & 19.7 \\ Hot Spot—90\% Confidence & 6.6 & 5.0 & 4.8 & 5.2 & 5.7 & 6.0 & 3.9 & 4.2 \\ Hot Spot—95\% Confidence & 5.4 & 4.7 & 4.2 & 5.7 & 5.1 & 5.5 & 3.5 & 3.2 \\ Hot Spot—99\% Confidence & 19.5 & 20.8 & 26.5 & 20.7 & 26.4 & 27.7 & 27.8 & 25.0 \\ Moran’s \(I\) & 0.409 & 0.385 & 0.486 & 0.322 & 0.639 & 0.605 & 0.604 & 0.615 \\ \hline \end{tabular} The statistically significant level was set at \(p<0.05\).  
\end{table}
Table 6: A summary of area coverage by hot, cold, and not-significant spots, along with Moran’s \(I\) values, for both NDBI and LST from 1990 to 2020.  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c c c} \hline \hline \multirow{2}{*}{**Years**} & \multicolumn{5}{c}{**NDBI**} & \multicolumn{5}{c}{**LST**} \\ \cline{2-10}  & **Min.** & **Max.** & **Mean** & **SD** & **Min.** & **Max.** & **Mean** & **SD** \\ \hline
1990 & \(-0.39\) & 0.21 & \(-0.06\) & 0.12 & 31.6 & 52.4 & 40.8 & 4.1 \\
2000 & \(-0.33\) & 0.23 & \(-0.03\) & 0.11 & 26.4 & 48.3 & 38.2 & 3.6 \\
2010 & \(-0.22\) & 0.17 & \(-0.03\) & 0.10 & 31.7 & 47.9 & 39.4 & 3.5 \\
2 When comparing the hot spot distribution of NDBI and LST, we found that most of the areas in the western, eastern, and the southeastern parts of the study area had experienced hot spots with 99% confidence. Areas within the center and towards the south, which were covered mostly with date palm plantations, had experienced zones of clustering of markedly cold spots, with a 99% confidence level. The areas characterized by spots that  
Figure 6: Change in hot and cold spots’ spatial patterns for NDBI during (**a**) 1990, (**b**) 2000, (**c**) 2010, and (**d**) 2020.  
Figure 7: Change in hot and cold spots’ spatial patterns for LST during (**a**) 1990, (**b**) 2000, (**c**) 2010, and (**d**) 2020.  
were not statistically significant were noticeably fragmented over the study area, with large portions in the northern parts for the years 1990 and 2000, and in the eastern parts for the years 2010 and 2020 (Figures 6 and 7).