The monitoring of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is widely used nowadays in the research on vegetation variation at both regional and global scales,which becomes as an important mean to reveal climate change. The important progresses in vegetation variation in the Northern Hemisphere under global warming in recent 30 years were systematically reviewed by focusing on the NDVI variation and the vegetation phenology extracted from NDVI (SOG: start of growing season; and EOG: end of growing Season). Results are as follows: ① A positive trend of NDVI occurred in the Northern Hemisphere in recent 30 years, the increase trend of forest NDVI was more obvious than that of other vegetation types, the increase trend of NDVI was more significant in the end-1990s than that in the 1980s,but it began to weaken from the beginning of the 21st century; ② There was an advanced trend of SOG in the Northern Hemisphere in recent 30 years,but such trend was slowed down during the first decade of this century. The advanced trend of SOG in the Eurasian region was more significant than that in North America,but the vegetation phenology change in Africa was not clear. The significant advanced trend of SOG was obvious in the latitudinal zone of 55°-65°N,and there was a significant delay trend of EOG in the latitudinal zone of 45°-55°N; ③ Despite of the serious forest degeneration, the vegetation cover became well in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau in recent 30 years, the NDVI was in a positive trend in the north,a slight increase trend in the center and east,and a decrease trend in the south. The advanced trend of SOG was also notable in the eastern and northern parts of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau.