CHAPARRAL SHRUBLANDS IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA HAVE BEEN SUBJECT TO FREQUENT FIRES AS WELL AS SEVERE PROLONGED DROUGHTS IN RECENT DECADES. SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL PATTERNS OF POSTFIRE SHRUB RECOVERY AND ANNUAL GROWTH REGULATE THE DEVELOPMENT OF FUELS AND EFFECTIVE CARBON STORAGE. DISRUPTED POSTFIRE RECOVERIES CAN ALTER ECOLOGICAL PROCESSES AND MAY LEAD TO IRREVERSIBLE CHANGES IN NATIVE SHRUB COVER. SHORT FIRE RETURN INTERVALS (<10 YEARS) ARE ASSOCIATED WITH VEGETATION TYPE CONVERSION FROM SHRUB TO GRASS AND HERBACEOUS COVER AT SOME SITES. DROUGHT CAN ALSO DISRUPT POSTFIRE RECOVERY OR LEAD TO SHRUB MORTALITY IN ABSENCE OF FIRE. EVIDENCE OF HOW FREQUENT FIRE AND DROUGHTS AFFECT CHAPARRAL IS MAINLY FROM PLOT-SCALE ECOLOGICAL STUDIES THAT SPAN LESS THAN A DECADE. DECOUPLING THE LONG-TERM IMPACTS AND RELATIONSHIPS OF FIRE AND DROUGHT IN SHRUBLAND ENVIRONMENTS IS VITAL FOR ECOLOGICAL CONSERVATION CLIMATE-BIOSPHERE MODELLING AND MANAGING WILDLAND FIRES THAT ARE HAZARDOUS TO HUMAN LIFE AND PROPERTY. TIME SERIES OF MULTI-SPECTRAL LANDSAT SURFACE REFLECTANCE PRODUCTS REPRESENT A UNIQUELY VIABLE BASIS FOR CHARACTERIZING POSTFIRE VEGETATION DEVELOPMENT AT REQUISITE SPATIAL RESOLUTION AND EXTENT DURING PAST DECADES TO INCLUDE A DIVERSITY OF SITES WITH UNIQUE FIRE RETURN INTERVALS AND DROUGHT HISTORIES. APPLYING SPATIAL AND TIME SERIES ANALYSES AND STATISTICAL METRICS OF VEGETATION CHANGE THIS RESEARCH WILL EXPAND OUR DOMAIN OF SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY BASED ON LANDSAT AND MODIS TIME SERIES. I WILL ADDRESS CRITICAL GAPS IN OUR KNOWLEDGE OF SHRUBLAND DISTURBANCES ACROSS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SINCE 1984 INCLUDING: (1) TO WHAT EXTENT HAVE REPEATED SHORT-INTERVAL FIRES (1-10 YEARS) INDUCED TYPE CONVERSION? (2) HOW HAVE SEVERE DROUGHTS IMPACTED POSTFIRE RECOVERY AND TYPE CONVERSION PROCESSES? (3) HOW DO SPATIAL ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS AFFECT RESILIENCE TO FIRE AND DROUGHT IMPACTS? A REMOTE SENSING BASED FRAMEWORK TO ASSESS MULTI-FACTORIAL VEGETATION DYNAMICS MAY SERVE AS A PROTOTYPE AND BE ADAPTED TO OTHER REGIONS SUBJECT TO SIMILAR ENVIRONMENTAL PRESSURES.