Abstract:A new estimation model of vegetation net primary production (NPP) based on remote sensing data and climatic data was presented, with which, the NPP of China terrestrial vegetation in 1982-2000 was estimated, and the intra- and inter- annual variation patterns of the NPP and its responses to climate factors were studied. The results showed that there was an obvious seasonal regularity in the intra-annual variation of the NPP. In 1982-2000, all the terrestrial vegetation types presented an increasing annual NPP, with the greatest increment for deciduous needle leaf forests and the smallest one for grasses. Evergreen broadleaf forests had the largest inter-annual variation, while grasses had the smallest one. Comparing with temperature, precipitation played a stronger driving role in the intra-annual variation of the NPP, and the effects of precipitation and temperature were more obvious in North China than in South China. The driving roles of the climate factors varied with season and latitude.