[Small unmanned aerial vehicles for low-altitude remote sensing and its application progress in ecology.

PubMed

Sun, Zhong Yu; Chen, Yan Qiao; Yang, Long; Tang, Guang Liang; Yuan, Shao Xiong; Lin, Zhi Wen

2017-02-01

Low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) remote sensing system overcomes the deficiencies of space and aerial remote sensing system in resolution, revisit period, cloud cover and cost, which provides a novel method for ecological research on mesoscale. This study introduced the composition of UAV remote sensing system, reviewed its applications in species, population, community and ecosystem ecology research. Challenges and opportunities of UAV ecology were identified to direct future research. The promising research area of UAV ecology includes the establishment of species morphology and spectral characteristic data base, species automatic identification, the revelation of relationship between spectral index and plant physiological processes, three-dimension monitoring of ecosystem, and the integration of remote sensing data from multi resources and multi scales. With the development of UAV platform, data transformation and sensors, UAV remote sensing technology will have wide application in ecology research.

A new framework for UAV-based remote sensing data processing and its application in almond water stress quantification

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

With the rapid development of small imaging sensors and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), remote sensing is undergoing a revolution with greatly increased spatial and temporal resolutions. While more relevant detail becomes available, it is a challenge to analyze the large number of images to extract...

Tracking the Creation of Tropical Forest Canopy Gaps with UAV Computer Vision Remote Sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dandois, J. P.

2015-12-01

The formation of canopy gaps is fundamental for shaping forest structure and is an important component of ecosystem function. Recent time-series of airborne LIDAR have shown great promise for improving understanding of the spatial distribution and size of forest gaps. However, such work typically looks at gap formation across multiple years and important intra-annual variation in gap dynamics remains unknown. Here we present findings on the intra-annual dynamics of canopy gap formation within the 50 ha forest dynamics plot of Barro Colorado Island (BCI), Panama based on unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remote sensing. High-resolution imagery (7 cm GSD) over the 50 ha plot was obtained regularly (≈ every 10 days) beginning October 2014 using a UAV equipped with a point and shoot camera. Imagery was processed into three-dimensional (3D) digital surface models (DSMs) using automated computer vision structure from motion / photogrammetric methods. New gaps that formed between each UAV flight were identified by subtracting DSMs between each interval and identifying areas of large deviation. A total of 48 new gaps were detected from 2014-10-02 to 2015-07-23, with sizes ranging from less than 20 m2 to greater than 350 m2. The creation of new gaps was also evaluated across wet and dry seasons with 4.5 new gaps detected per month in the dry season (Jan. - May) and 5.2 per month outside the dry season (Oct. - Jan. & May - July). The incidence of gap formation was positively correlated with ground-surveyed liana stem density (R2 = 0.77, p < 0.001) at the 1 hectare scale. Further research will consider the role of climate in predicting gap formation frequency as well as site history and other edaphic factors. Future satellite missions capable of observing vegetation structure at greater extents and frequencies than airborne observations will be greatly enhanced by the high spatial and temporal resolution bridging scale made possible by UAV remote sensing.

Unmanned aerial vehicle: A unique platform for low-altitude remote sensing for crop management

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) provide a unique platform for remote sensing to monitor crop fields that complements remote sensing from satellite, aircraft and ground-based platforms. The UAV-based remote sensing is versatile at ultra-low altitude to be able to provide an ultra-high-resolution imag...

Data Acquisition (DAQ) system dedicated for remote sensing applications on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keleshis, C.; Ioannou, S.; Vrekoussis, M.; Levin, Z.; Lange, M. A.

2014-08-01

Continuous advances in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and the increased complexity of their applications raise the demand for improved data acquisition systems (DAQ). These improvements may comprise low power consumption, low volume and weight, robustness, modularity and capability to interface with various sensors and peripherals while maintaining the high sampling rates and processing speeds. Such a system has been designed and developed and is currently integrated on the Autonomous Flying Platforms for Atmospheric and Earth Surface Observations (APAESO/NEA-YΠOΔOMH/NEKΠ/0308/09) however, it can be easily adapted to any UAV or any other mobile vehicle. The system consists of a single-board computer with a dual-core processor, rugged surface-mount memory and storage device, analog and digital input-output ports and many other peripherals that enhance its connectivity with various sensors, imagers and on-board devices. The system is powered by a high efficiency power supply board. Additional boards such as frame-grabbers, differential global positioning system (DGPS) satellite receivers, general packet radio service (3G-4G-GPRS) modems for communication redundancy have been interfaced to the core system and are used whenever there is a mission need. The onboard DAQ system can be preprogrammed for automatic data acquisition or it can be remotely operated during the flight from the ground control station (GCS) using a graphical user interface (GUI) which has been developed and will also be presented in this paper. The unique design of the GUI and the DAQ system enables the synchronized acquisition of a variety of scientific and UAV flight data in a single core location. The new DAQ system and the GUI have been successfully utilized in several scientific UAV missions. In conclusion, the novel DAQ system provides the UAV and the remote-sensing community with a new tool capable of reliably acquiring, processing, storing and transmitting data from any sensor integrated

UAV remote sensing for phenotyping drought tolerance in peanuts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balota, Maria; Oakes, Joseph

2017-05-01

Farmers can benefit from growing drought tolerant peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) cultivars with improved yield when rainfall is sporadic. In the Virginia-Carolina (VC) region, drought is magnified by hot summers and usually occurs in July and Aug when pod and seed growth are intense. At these growth stages, weekly supply of 50 to 75 mm of water is needed to ensure profitability. Irrigation can supplement crop water needs, but only 10% of the peanut farms are irrigated. In this frame, drought tolerant varieties can be profitable, but breeding for cultivars with improved drought tolerance requires fast yet accurate phenotyping. Our objective was to evaluate the potential of UAV remote sensing technologies for drought tolerance selection in peanut. In this study, we examined the effect of drought on leaf wilting, pod yield, grading characteristics, and crop value of 23 peanut cultivars (Virginia, Runner, and Valencia type). These varieties were arranged in a factorial design, with four replications drought stressed and two replications well-watered. Drought was imposed by covering the drought stressed plots with rainout shelters on July 19; they remained covered until August 29 and only received 38 mm irrigation in mid Aug. The well-watered plots continued to receive rain and supplemental irrigation as needed. During this time, Canopy Temperature Depression (CT) and Normalized Differential Vegetative Index (NDVI) were collected from the ground on all plots at weekly intervals. After the shelters were removed, these measurements were collected daily for approximately 2 weeks. At the same time, Red-Green-Blue (RGB), near-infrared (NIR), and infrared (IR) images taken from an UAV platform were also collected. Vegetation indices derived from the ground and aerial data were compared with leaf wilting, pod yield and crop value. Wilting, which is a common water stress symptom, was best estimated by NDVI and RGB, and least by CT; but CT was best in estimating yield, SMK and

Construction of an unmanned aerial vehicle remote sensing system for crop monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeong, Seungtaek; Ko, Jonghan; Kim, Mijeong; Kim, Jongkwon

2016-04-01

We constructed a lightweight unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remote sensing system and determined the ideal method for equipment setup, image acquisition, and image processing. Fields of rice paddy (Oryza sativa cv. Unkwang) grown under three different nitrogen (N) treatments of 0, 50, or 115 kg/ha were monitored at Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea, in 2013. A multispectral camera was used to acquire UAV images from the study site. Atmospheric correction of these images was completed using the empirical line method, and three-point (black, gray, and white) calibration boards were used as pseudo references. Evaluation of our corrected UAV-based remote sensing data revealed that correction efficiency and root mean square errors ranged from 0.77 to 0.95 and 0.01 to 0.05, respectively. The time series maps of simulated normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) produced using the UAV images reproduced field variations of NDVI reasonably well, both within and between the different N treatments. We concluded that the UAV-based remote sensing technology utilized in this study is potentially an easy and simple way to quantitatively obtain reliable two-dimensional remote sensing information on crop growth.

UAV Cooperation Architectures for Persistent Sensing

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Roberts, R S; Kent, C A; Jones, E D

2003-03-20

With the number of small, inexpensive Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs) increasing, it is feasible to build multi-UAV sensing networks. In particular, by using UAVs in conjunction with unattended ground sensors, a degree of persistent sensing can be achieved. With proper UAV cooperation algorithms, sensing is maintained even though exceptional events, e.g., the loss of a UAV, have occurred. In this paper a cooperation technique that allows multiple UAVs to perform coordinated, persistent sensing with unattended ground sensors over a wide area is described. The technique automatically adapts the UAV paths so that on the average, the amount of time thatmore » any sensor has to wait for a UAV revisit is minimized. We also describe the Simulation, Tactical Operations and Mission Planning (STOMP) software architecture. This architecture is designed to help simulate and operate distributed sensor networks where multiple UAVs are used to collect data.« less

UAV remote sensing atmospheric degradation image restoration based on multiple scattering APSF estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qiu, Xiang; Dai, Ming; Yin, Chuan-li

2017-09-01

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remote imaging is affected by the bad weather, and the obtained images have the disadvantages of low contrast, complex texture and blurring. In this paper, we propose a blind deconvolution model based on multiple scattering atmosphere point spread function (APSF) estimation to recovery the remote sensing image. According to Narasimhan analytical theory, a new multiple scattering restoration model is established based on the improved dichromatic model. Then using the L0 norm sparse priors of gradient and dark channel to estimate APSF blur kernel, the fast Fourier transform is used to recover the original clear image by Wiener filtering. By comparing with other state-of-the-art methods, the proposed method can correctly estimate blur kernel, effectively remove the atmospheric degradation phenomena, preserve image detail information and increase the quality evaluation indexes.

UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE (UAV) HYPERSPECTRAL REMOTE SENSING FOR DRYLAND VEGETATION MONITORING

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nancy F. Glenn; Jessica J. Mitchell; Matthew O. Anderson

2012-06-01

UAV-based hyperspectral remote sensing capabilities developed by the Idaho National Lab and Idaho State University, Boise Center Aerospace Lab, were recently tested via demonstration flights that explored the influence of altitude on geometric error, image mosaicking, and dryland vegetation classification. The test flights successfully acquired usable flightline data capable of supporting classifiable composite images. Unsupervised classification results support vegetation management objectives that rely on mapping shrub cover and distribution patterns. Overall, supervised classifications performed poorly despite spectral separability in the image-derived endmember pixels. Future mapping efforts that leverage ground reference data, ultra-high spatial resolution photos and time series analysis shouldmore » be able to effectively distinguish native grasses such as Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda), from invasives such as burr buttercup (Ranunculus testiculatus) and cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum).« less

Radar sensing via a Micro-UAV-borne system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Catapano, Ilaria; Ludeno, Giovanni; Gennarelli, Gianluca; Soldovieri, Francesco; Rodi Vetrella, Amedeo; Fasano, Giancarmine

2017-04-01

In recent years, the miniaturization of flight control systems and payloads has contributed to a fast and widespread diffusion of micro-UAV (Unmanned Aircraft Vehicle). While micro-UAV can be a powerful tool in several civil applications such as environmental monitoring and surveillance, unleashing their full potential for societal benefits requires augmenting their sensing capability beyond the realm of active/passive optical sensors [1]. In this frame, radar systems are drawing attention since they allow performing missions in all-weather and day/night conditions and, thanks to the microwave ability to penetrate opaque media, they enable the detection and localization not only of surface objects but also of sub-surface/hidden targets. However, micro-UAV-borne radar imaging represents still a new frontier, since it is much more than a matter of technology miniaturization or payload installation, which can take advantage of the newly developed ultralight systems. Indeed, micro-UAV-borne radar imaging entails scientific challenges in terms of electromagnetic modeling and knowledge of flight dynamics and control. As a consequence, despite Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imaging is a traditional remote sensing tool, its adaptation to micro-UAV is an open issue and so far only few case studies concerning the integration of SAR and UAV technologies have been reported worldwide [2]. In addition, only early results concerning subsurface imaging by means of an UAV-mounted radar are available [3]. As a contribution to radar imaging via autonomous micro-UAV, this communication presents a proof-of-concept experiment. This experiment represents the first step towards the development of a general methodological approach that exploits expertise about (sub-)surface imaging and aerospace systems with the aim to provide high-resolution images of the surveyed scene. In details, at the conference, we will present the results of a flight campaign carried out by using a single radar

[Retrieval of crown closure of moso bamboo forest using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remotely sensed imagery based on geometric-optical model].

PubMed

Wang, Cong; Du, Hua-qiang; Zhou, Guo-mo; Xu, Xiao-jun; Sun, Shao-bo; Gao, Guo-long

2015-05-01

This research focused on the application of remotely sensed imagery from unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with high spatial resolution for the estimation of crown closure of moso bamboo forest based on the geometric-optical model, and analyzed the influence of unconstrained and fully constrained linear spectral mixture analysis (SMA) on the accuracy of the estimated results. The results demonstrated that the combination of UAV remotely sensed imagery and geometric-optical model could, to some degrees, achieve the estimation of crown closure. However, the different SMA methods led to significant differentiation in the estimation accuracy. Compared with unconstrained SMA, the fully constrained linear SMA method resulted in higher accuracy of the estimated values, with the coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.63 at 0.01 level, against the measured values acquired during the field survey. Root mean square error (RMSE) of approximate 0.04 was low, indicating that the usage of fully constrained linear SMA could bring about better results in crown closure estimation, which was closer to the actual condition in moso bamboo forest.

Meteorological and Remote Sensing Applications of High Altitude Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schoenung, S. M.; Wegener, S. S.

1999-01-01

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are maturing in performance and becoming available for routine use in environmental applications including weather reconnaissance and remote sensing. This paper presents a discussion of UAV characteristics and unique features compared with other measurement platforms. A summary of potential remote sensing applications is provided, along with details for four types of tropical cyclone missions. Capabilities of platforms developed under NASA's Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology (ERAST) program are reviewed, including the Altus, Perseus, and solar- powered Pathfinder, all of which have flown to over 57,000 ft (17 km). In many scientific missions, the science objectives drive the experimental design, thus defining the sensor payload, aircraft performance, and operational requirements. Some examples of science missions and the requisite UAV / payload system are given. A discussion of technology developments needed to fully mature UAV systems for routine operational use is included, along with remarks on future science and commercial UAV business opportunities.

Cooperative remote sensing and actuation using networked unmanned vehicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chao, Haiyang

This dissertation focuses on how to design and employ networked unmanned vehicles for remote sensing and distributed control purposes in the current information-rich world. The target scenarios are environmental or agricultural applications such as river/reservoir surveillance, wind profiling measurement, and monitoring/control of chemical leaks, etc. AggieAir, a small and low-cost unmanned aircraft system, is designed based on the remote sensing requirements from environmental monitoring missions. The state estimation problem and the advanced lateral flight controller design problem are further attacked focusing on the small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platform. Then the UAV-based remote sensing problem is focused with further flight test results. Given the measurements from unmanned vehicles, the actuation algorithms are needed for missions like the diffusion control. A consensus-based central Voronoi tessellation (CVT) algorithm is proposed for better control of the diffusion process. Finally, the dissertation conclusion and some new research suggestions are presented.

Remote Sensing of Arctic Environmental Conditions and Critical Infrastructure using Infra-Red (IR) Cameras and Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hatfield, M. C.; Webley, P.; Saiet, E., II

2014-12-01

Remote Sensing of Arctic Environmental Conditions and Critical Infrastructure using Infra-Red (IR) Cameras and Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs) Numerous scientific and logistical applications exist in Alaska and other arctic regions requiring analysis of expansive, remote areas in the near infrared (NIR) and thermal infrared (TIR) bands. These include characterization of wild land fire plumes and volcanic ejecta, detailed mapping of lava flows, and inspection of lengthy segments of critical infrastructure, such as the Alaska pipeline and railroad system. Obtaining timely, repeatable, calibrated measurements of these extensive features and infrastructure networks requires localized, taskable assets such as UAVs. The Alaska Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration (ACUASI) provides practical solutions to these problem sets by pairing various IR sensors with a combination of fixed-wing and multi-rotor air vehicles. Fixed-wing assets, such as the Insitu ScanEagle, offer long reach and extended duration capabilities to quickly access remote locations and provide enduring surveillance of the target of interest. Rotary-wing assets, such as the Aeryon Scout or the ACUASI-built Ptarmigan hexcopter, provide a precision capability for detailed horizontal mapping or vertical stratification of atmospheric phenomena. When included with other ground capabilities, we will show how they can assist in decision support and hazard assessment as well as giving those in emergency management a new ability to increase knowledge of the event at hand while reducing the risk to all involved. Here, in this presentation, we illustrate how UAV's can provide the ideal tool to map and analyze the hazardous events and critical infrastructure under extreme environmental conditions.

Low-cost multispectral imaging for remote sensing of lettuce health

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ren, David D. W.; Tripathi, Siddhant; Li, Larry K. B.

2017-01-01

In agricultural remote sensing, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platforms offer many advantages over conventional satellite and full-scale airborne platforms. One of the most important advantages is their ability to capture high spatial resolution images (1-10 cm) on-demand and at different viewing angles. However, UAV platforms typically rely on the use of multiple cameras, which can be costly and difficult to operate. We present the development of a simple low-cost imaging system for remote sensing of crop health and demonstrate it on lettuce (Lactuca sativa) grown in Hong Kong. To identify the optimal vegetation index, we recorded images of both healthy and unhealthy lettuce, and used them as input in an expectation maximization cluster analysis with a Gaussian mixture model. Results from unsupervised and supervised clustering show that, among four widely used vegetation indices, the blue wide-dynamic range vegetation index is the most accurate. This study shows that it is readily possible to design and build a remote sensing system capable of determining the health status of lettuce at a reasonably low cost (UAV technology, this system could lead to yield increases for lettuce growers.

UAVs Being Used for Environmental Surveying

ScienceCinema

Chung, Sandra

2017-12-09

UAVs, are much more sophisticated than your typical remote-controlled plane. INL robotics and remote sensing experts have added state-of-the-art imaging and wireless technology to the UAVs to create intelligent remote surveillance craft that can rapidly survey a wide area for damage and track down security threats.

NASA Fluid Lensing & MiDAR: Next-Generation Remote Sensing Technologies for Aquatic Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chirayath, Ved

2018-01-01

We present two recent instrument technology developments at NASA, Fluid Lensing and MiDAR, and their application to remote sensing of Earth's aquatic systems. Fluid Lensing is the first remote sensing technology capable of imaging through ocean waves in 3D at sub-cm resolutions. MiDAR is a next-generation active hyperspectral remote sensing and optical communications instrument capable of active fluid lensing. Fluid Lensing has been used to provide 3D multispectral imagery of shallow marine systems from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or drones), including coral reefs in American Samoa and stromatolite reefs in Hamelin Pool, Western Australia. MiDAR is being deployed on aircraft and underwater remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to enable a new method for remote sensing of living and nonliving structures in extreme environments. MiDAR images targets with high-intensity narrowband structured optical radiation to measure an objectâ€"TM"s non-linear spectral reflectance, image through fluid interfaces such as ocean waves with active fluid lensing, and simultaneously transmit high-bandwidth data. As an active instrument, MiDAR is capable of remotely sensing reflectance at the centimeter (cm) spatial scale with a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) multiple orders of magnitude higher than passive airborne and spaceborne remote sensing systems with significantly reduced integration time. This allows for rapid video-frame-rate hyperspectral sensing into the far ultraviolet and VNIR wavelengths. Previously, MiDAR was developed into a TRL 2 laboratory instrument capable of imaging in thirty-two narrowband channels across the VNIR spectrum (400-950nm). Recently, MiDAR UV was raised to TRL4 and expanded to include five ultraviolet bands from 280-400nm, permitting UV remote sensing capabilities in UV A, B, and C bands and enabling mineral identification and stimulated fluorescence measurements of organic proteins and compounds, such as green fluorescent proteins in terrestrial and

[Comparison of precision in retrieving soybean leaf area index based on multi-source remote sensing data].

PubMed

Gao, Lin; Li, Chang-chun; Wang, Bao-shan; Yang Gui-jun; Wang, Lei; Fu, Kui

2016-01-01

With the innovation of remote sensing technology, remote sensing data sources are more and more abundant. The main aim of this study was to analyze retrieval accuracy of soybean leaf area index (LAI) based on multi-source remote sensing data including ground hyperspectral, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) multispectral and the Gaofen-1 (GF-1) WFV data. Ratio vegetation index (RVI), normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), soil-adjusted vegetation index (SAVI), difference vegetation index (DVI), and triangle vegetation index (TVI) were used to establish LAI retrieval models, respectively. The models with the highest calibration accuracy were used in the validation. The capability of these three kinds of remote sensing data for LAI retrieval was assessed according to the estimation accuracy of models. The experimental results showed that the models based on the ground hyperspectral and UAV multispectral data got better estimation accuracy (R² was more than 0.69 and RMSE was less than 0.4 at 0.01 significance level), compared with the model based on WFV data. The RVI logarithmic model based on ground hyperspectral data was little superior to the NDVI linear model based on UAV multispectral data (The difference in E(A), R² and RMSE were 0.3%, 0.04 and 0.006, respectively). The models based on WFV data got the lowest estimation accuracy with R2 less than 0.30 and RMSE more than 0.70. The effects of sensor spectral response characteristics, sensor geometric location and spatial resolution on the soybean LAI retrieval were discussed. The results demonstrated that ground hyperspectral data were advantageous but not prominent over traditional multispectral data in soybean LAI retrieval. WFV imagery with 16 m spatial resolution could not meet the requirements of crop growth monitoring at field scale. Under the condition of ensuring the high precision in retrieving soybean LAI and working efficiently, the approach to acquiring agricultural information by UAV remote

Earth Remote Sensing for Weather Forecasting and Disaster Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Molthan, Andrew; Bell, Jordan; Case, Jonathan; Cole, Tony; Elmer, Nicholas; McGrath, Kevin; Schultz, Lori; Zavodsky, Brad

2016-01-01

NASA's constellation of current missions provide several opportunities to apply satellite remote sensing observations to weather forecasting and disaster response applications. Examples include: Using NASA's Terra and Aqua MODIS, and the NASA/NOAA Suomi-NPP VIIRS missions to prepare weather forecasters for capabilities of GOES-R; Incorporating other NASA remote sensing assets for improving aspects of numerical weather prediction; Using NASA, NOAA, and international partner resources (e.g. ESA/Sentinel Series); and commercial platforms (high-res, or UAV) to support disaster mapping.

The application of unmanned aerial vehicle remote sensing for monitoring secondary geological disasters after earthquakes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lei, Tianjie; Zhang, Yazhen; Wang, Xingyong; Fu, Jun'e.; Li, Lin; Pang, Zhiguo; Zhang, Xiaolei; Kan, Guangyuan

2017-07-01

Remote sensing system fitted on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) can obtain clear images and high-resolution aerial photographs. It has advantages of strong real-time, flexibility and convenience, free from influence of external environment, low cost, low-flying under clouds and ability to work full-time. When an earthquake happened, it could go deep into the places safely and reliably which human staff can hardly approach, such as secondary geological disasters hit areas. The system can be timely precise in response to secondary geological disasters monitoring by a way of obtaining first-hand information as quickly as possible, producing a unique emergency response capacity to provide a scientific basis for overall decision-making processes. It can greatly enhance the capability of on-site disaster emergency working team in data collection and transmission. The great advantages of UAV remote sensing system played an irreplaceable role in monitoring secondary geological disaster dynamics and influences. Taking the landslides and barrier lakes for example, the paper explored the basic application and process of UAV remote sensing in the disaster emergency relief. UAV high-resolution remote sensing images had been exploited to estimate the situation of disaster-hit areas and monitor secondary geological disasters rapidly, systematically and continuously. Furthermore, a rapid quantitative assessment on the distribution and size of landslides and barrier lakes was carried out. Monitoring results could support relevant government departments and rescue teams, providing detailed and reliable scientific evidence for disaster relief and decision-making.

Remote sensing of plant trait responses to field-based plant-soil feedback using UAV-based optical sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van der Meij, Bob; Kooistra, Lammert; Suomalainen, Juha; Barel, Janna M.; De Deyn, Gerlinde B.

2017-02-01

Plant responses to biotic and abiotic legacies left in soil by preceding plants is known as plant-soil feedback (PSF). PSF is an important mechanism to explain plant community dynamics and plant performance in natural and agricultural systems. However, most PSF studies are short-term and small-scale due to practical constraints for field-scale quantification of PSF effects, yet field experiments are warranted to assess actual PSF effects under less controlled conditions. Here we used unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based optical sensors to test whether PSF effects on plant traits can be quantified remotely. We established a randomized agro-ecological field experiment in which six different cover crop species and species combinations from three different plant families (Poaceae, Fabaceae, Brassicaceae) were grown. The feedback effects on plant traits were tested in oat (Avena sativa) by quantifying the cover crop legacy effects on key plant traits: height, fresh biomass, nitrogen content, and leaf chlorophyll content. Prior to destructive sampling, hyperspectral data were acquired and used for calibration and independent validation of regression models to retrieve plant traits from optical data. Subsequently, for each trait the model with highest precision and accuracy was selected. We used the hyperspectral analyses to predict the directly measured plant height (RMSE = 5.12 cm, R2 = 0.79), chlorophyll content (RMSE = 0.11 g m-2, R2 = 0.80), N-content (RMSE = 1.94 g m-2, R2 = 0.68), and fresh biomass (RMSE = 0.72 kg m-2, R2 = 0.56). Overall the PSF effects of the different cover crop treatments based on the remote sensing data matched the results based on in situ measurements. The average oat canopy was tallest and its leaf chlorophyll content highest in response to legacy of Vicia sativa monocultures (100 cm, 0.95 g m-2, respectively) and in mixture with Raphanus sativus (100 cm, 1.09 g m-2, respectively), while the lowest values (76 cm, 0.41 g m-2, respectively

Remote sensing with laser spectrum radar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Tianhe; Zhou, Tao; Jia, Xiaodong

2016-10-01

The unmanned airborne (UAV) laser spectrum radar has played a leading role in remote sensing because the transmitter and the receiver are together at laser spectrum radar. The advantages of the integrated transceiver laser spectrum radar is that it can be used in the oil and gas pipeline leak detection patrol line which needs the non-contact reflective detection. The UAV laser spectrum radar can patrol the line and specially detect the swept the area are now in no man's land because most of the oil and gas pipelines are in no man's land. It can save labor costs compared to the manned aircraft and ensure the safety of the pilots. The UAV laser spectrum radar can be also applied in the post disaster relief which detects the gas composition before the firefighters entering the scene of the rescue.

Development of a Near Ground Remote Sensing System

PubMed Central

Zhang, Yanchao; Xiao, Yuzhao; Zhuang, Zaichun; Zhou, Liping; Liu, Fei; He, Yong

2016-01-01

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have shown great potential in agriculture and are increasingly being developed for agricultural use. There are still a lot of experiments that need to be done to improve their performance and explore new uses, but experiments using UAVs are limited by many conditions like weather and location and the time it takes to prepare for a flight. To promote UAV remote sensing, a near ground remote sensing platform was developed. This platform consists of three major parts: (1) mechanical structures like a horizontal rail, vertical cylinder, and three axes gimbal; (2) power supply and control parts; (3) onboard application components. This platform covers five degrees of freedom (DOFs): horizontal, vertical, pitch, roll, yaw. A stm32 ARM single chip was used as the controller of the whole platform and another stm32 MCU was used to stabilize the gimbal. The gimbal stabilizer communicates with the main controller via a CAN bus. A multispectral camera was mounted on the gimbal. Software written in C++ language was developed as the graphical user interface. Operating parameters were set via this software and the working status was displayed in this software. To test how well the system works, a laser distance meter was used to measure the slide rail’s repeat accuracy. A 3-axis vibration analyzer was used to test the system stability. Test results show that the horizontal repeat accuracy was less than 2 mm; vertical repeat accuracy was less than 1 mm; vibration was less than 2 g and remained at an acceptable level. This system has high accuracy and stability and can therefore be used for various near ground remote sensing studies. PMID:27164111

Yellow River Icicle Hazard Dynamic Monitoring Using UAV Aerial Remote Sensing Technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, H. B.; Wang, G. H.; Tang, X. M.; Li, C. H.

2014-02-01

Monitoring the response of Yellow River icicle hazard change requires accurate and repeatable topographic surveys. A new method based on unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) aerial remote sensing technology is proposed for real-time data processing in Yellow River icicle hazard dynamic monitoring. The monitoring area is located in the Yellow River ice intensive care area in southern BaoTou of Inner Mongolia autonomous region. Monitoring time is from the 20th February to 30th March in 2013. Using the proposed video data processing method, automatic extraction covering area of 7.8 km2 of video key frame image 1832 frames took 34.786 seconds. The stitching and correcting time was 122.34 seconds and the accuracy was better than 0.5 m. Through the comparison of precise processing of sequence video stitching image, the method determines the change of the Yellow River ice and locates accurate positioning of ice bar, improving the traditional visual method by more than 100 times. The results provide accurate aid decision information for the Yellow River ice prevention headquarters. Finally, the effect of dam break is repeatedly monitored and ice break five meter accuracy is calculated through accurate monitoring and evaluation analysis.

Bushland Evapotranspiration and Agricultural Remote Sensing System (BEARS) software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gowda, P. H.; Moorhead, J.; Brauer, D. K.

2017-12-01

Evapotranspiration (ET) is a major component of the hydrologic cycle. ET data are used for a variety of water management and research purposes such as irrigation scheduling, water and crop modeling, streamflow, water availability, and many more. Remote sensing products have been widely used to create spatially representative ET data sets which provide important information from field to regional scales. As UAV capabilities increase, remote sensing use is likely to also increase. For that purpose, scientists at the USDA-ARS research laboratory in Bushland, TX developed the Bushland Evapotranspiration and Agricultural Remote Sensing System (BEARS) software. The BEARS software is a Java based software that allows users to process remote sensing data to generate ET outputs using predefined models, or enter custom equations and models. The capability to define new equations and build new models expands the applicability of the BEARS software beyond ET mapping to any remote sensing application. The software also includes an image viewing tool that allows users to visualize outputs, as well as draw an area of interest using various shapes. This software is freely available from the USDA-ARS Conservation and Production Research Laboratory website.

Assessing UAVs in Monitoring Crop Evapotranspiration within a Heterogeneous Soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rouze, G.; Neely, H.; Morgan, C.; Kustas, W. P.; McKee, L.; Prueger, J. H.; Cope, D.; Yang, C.; Thomasson, A.; Jung, J.

2017-12-01

Airborne and satellite remote sensing methods have been developed to provide ET estimates across entire management fields. However, airborne-based ET is not particularly cost-effective and satellite-based ET provides insufficient spatial/temporal information. ET estimations through remote sensing are also problematic where soils are highly variable within a given management field. Unlike airborne/satellite-based ET, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-based ET has the potential to increase the spatial and temporal detail of these measurements, particularly within a heterogeneous soil landscape. However, it is unclear to what extent UAVs can model ET. The overall goal of this project was to assess the capability of UAVs in modeling ET across a heterogeneous landscape. Within a 20-ha irrigated cotton field in Central Texas, low-altitude UAV surveys were conducted throughout the growing season over two soil types. UAVs were equipped with thermal and multispectral cameras to obtain canopy temperature and NDVI, respectively. UAV data were supplemented simultaneously with ground-truth measurements such as Leaf Area Index (LAI) and plant height. Both remote sensing and ground-truth parameters were used to model ET using a Two-Source Energy Balance (TSEB) model. UAV-based estimations of ET and other energy balance components were validated against energy balance measurements obtained from nearby eddy covariance towers that were installed within each soil type. UAV-based ET fluxes were also compared with airborne and satellite (Landsat 8)-based ET fluxes collected near the time of the UAV survey.

Fusion of spatio-temporal UAV and proximal sensing data for an agricultural decision support system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katsigiannis, P.; Galanis, G.; Dimitrakos, A.; Tsakiridis, N.; Kalopesas, C.; Alexandridis, T.; Chouzouri, A.; Patakas, A.; Zalidis, G.

2016-08-01

Over the last few years, multispectral and thermal remote sensing imagery from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has found application in agriculture and has been regarded as a means of field data collection and crop condition monitoring source. The integration of information derived from the analysis of these remotely sensed data into agricultural management applications facilitates and aids the stakeholder's decision making. Whereas agricultural decision support systems (DSS) have long been utilised in farming applications, there are still critical gaps to be addressed; as the current approach often neglects the plant's level information and lacks the robustness to account for the spatial and temporal variability of environmental parameters within agricultural systems. In this paper, we demonstrate the use of a custom built autonomous UAV platform in providing critical information for an agricultural DSS. This hexacopter UAV bears two cameras which can be triggered simultaneously and can capture both the visible, near-infrared (VNIR) and the thermal infrared (TIR) wavelengths. The platform was employed for the rapid extraction of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and the crop water stress index (CWSI) of three different plantations, namely a kiwi, a pomegranate, and a vine field. The simultaneous recording of these two complementary indices and the creation of maps was advantageous for the accurate assessment of the plantation's status. Fusion of UAV and soil scanner system products pinpointed the necessity for adjustment of the irrigation management applied. It is concluded that timely CWSI and NDVI measures retrieved for different crop growing stages can provide additional information and can serve as a tool to support the existing irrigation DSS that had so far been exclusively based on telemetry data from soil and agrometeorological sensors. Additionally, the use of the multi-sensor UAV was found to be beneficial in collecting timely, spatio

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Remote Sensing for Field-Based Crop Phenotyping: Current Status and Perspectives.

PubMed

Yang, Guijun; Liu, Jiangang; Zhao, Chunjiang; Li, Zhenhong; Huang, Yanbo; Yu, Haiyang; Xu, Bo; Yang, Xiaodong; Zhu, Dongmei; Zhang, Xiaoyan; Zhang, Ruyang; Feng, Haikuan; Zhao, Xiaoqing; Li, Zhenhai; Li, Heli; Yang, Hao

2017-01-01

Phenotyping plays an important role in crop science research; the accurate and rapid acquisition of phenotypic information of plants or cells in different environments is helpful for exploring the inheritance and expression patterns of the genome to determine the association of genomic and phenotypic information to increase the crop yield. Traditional methods for acquiring crop traits, such as plant height, leaf color, leaf area index (LAI), chlorophyll content, biomass and yield, rely on manual sampling, which is time-consuming and laborious. Unmanned aerial vehicle remote sensing platforms (UAV-RSPs) equipped with different sensors have recently become an important approach for fast and non-destructive high throughput phenotyping and have the advantage of flexible and convenient operation, on-demand access to data and high spatial resolution. UAV-RSPs are a powerful tool for studying phenomics and genomics. As the methods and applications for field phenotyping using UAVs to users who willing to derive phenotypic parameters from large fields and tests with the minimum effort on field work and getting highly reliable results are necessary, the current status and perspectives on the topic of UAV-RSPs for field-based phenotyping were reviewed based on the literature survey of crop phenotyping using UAV-RSPs in the Web of Science™ Core Collection database and cases study by NERCITA. The reference for the selection of UAV platforms and remote sensing sensors, the commonly adopted methods and typical applications for analyzing phenotypic traits by UAV-RSPs, and the challenge for crop phenotyping by UAV-RSPs were considered. The review can provide theoretical and technical support to promote the applications of UAV-RSPs for crop phenotyping.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Remote Sensing for Field-Based Crop Phenotyping: Current Status and Perspectives

PubMed Central

Yang, Guijun; Liu, Jiangang; Zhao, Chunjiang; Li, Zhenhong; Huang, Yanbo; Yu, Haiyang; Xu, Bo; Yang, Xiaodong; Zhu, Dongmei; Zhang, Xiaoyan; Zhang, Ruyang; Feng, Haikuan; Zhao, Xiaoqing; Li, Zhenhai; Li, Heli; Yang, Hao

2017-01-01

Phenotyping plays an important role in crop science research; the accurate and rapid acquisition of phenotypic information of plants or cells in different environments is helpful for exploring the inheritance and expression patterns of the genome to determine the association of genomic and phenotypic information to increase the crop yield. Traditional methods for acquiring crop traits, such as plant height, leaf color, leaf area index (LAI), chlorophyll content, biomass and yield, rely on manual sampling, which is time-consuming and laborious. Unmanned aerial vehicle remote sensing platforms (UAV-RSPs) equipped with different sensors have recently become an important approach for fast and non-destructive high throughput phenotyping and have the advantage of flexible and convenient operation, on-demand access to data and high spatial resolution. UAV-RSPs are a powerful tool for studying phenomics and genomics. As the methods and applications for field phenotyping using UAVs to users who willing to derive phenotypic parameters from large fields and tests with the minimum effort on field work and getting highly reliable results are necessary, the current status and perspectives on the topic of UAV-RSPs for field-based phenotyping were reviewed based on the literature survey of crop phenotyping using UAV-RSPs in the Web of Science™ Core Collection database and cases study by NERCITA. The reference for the selection of UAV platforms and remote sensing sensors, the commonly adopted methods and typical applications for analyzing phenotypic traits by UAV-RSPs, and the challenge for crop phenotyping by UAV-RSPs were considered. The review can provide theoretical and technical support to promote the applications of UAV-RSPs for crop phenotyping. PMID:28713402

UAV remote sening for precision agriculture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vigneau, Nathalie; Chéron, Corentin; Mainfroy, Florent; Faroux, Romain

2014-05-01

Airinov offers to farmers, scientists and experimenters (plant breeders, etc.) its technical skills about UAVs, cartography and agronomic remote sensing. The UAV is a 2-m-wingspan flying wing. It can carry away either a RGB camera or a multispectral sensor, which records reflectance in 4 spectral bands. The spectral characteristics of the sensor are modular. Each spectral band is comprised between 400 and 850 nm and the FWHM (Full Width at Half Maximum) is between 10 and 40 nm. The spatial resolution varies according to sensor, flying height and user needs from 15cm/px for multispectral sensor at 150m to 1.5cm/px for RGB camera at 50m. The flight is totally automatic thanks to on-board autopilot, IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) and GPS. Data processing (unvignetting, mosaicking, correction in reflectance) leads to agronomic variables as LAI (Leaf Area Index) or chlorophyll content for barley, wheat, rape and maize as well as vegetation indices as NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index). Using these data, Airinov can product advices for farmers as nitrogen preconisation for rape. For scientists, Airinov offers trial plot monitoring by micro-plots vectorisation and numerical data exctraction micro-plot by micro-plot. This can lead to kinetic curve for LAI or NDVI to compare cover establishment for different genotypes for example. Airinov's system is a new way to monitor plots with a lot of data (biophysical or biochemical parameters) at high rate, high spatial resolution and high precision.

Remote sensing of Northern mines: supporting operation and environmental monitoring in cold conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tuomela, Anne; Davids, Corine; Knutsson, Sven; Knutsson, Roger; Rauhala, Anssi; Rossi, Pekka M.; Rouyet, Line

2017-04-01

Northern areas of Finland, Sweden and Norway have mineral-rich deposits. There are several active mines in the area but also closed ones and deposits with plans for future mining. With increasing demand for environmental protection in the sensitive Northern conditions, there is a need for more comprehensive monitoring of the mining environment. In our study, we aim to develop new opportunities to use remote sensing data from satellites and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in improving mining safety and monitoring, for example in the case of mine waste storage facilities. Remote sensing methods have evolved fast, and could in many cases enable precise, reliable, and cost-efficient data collection over large areas. The study has focused on four mining areas in Northern Fennoscandia. Freely available medium-resolution (e.g. Sentinel-1), commercial high-resolution (e.g. TerraSAR-X) and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data has been collected during 2015-2016 to study how satellite remote sensing could be used e.g. for displacement monitoring using SAR Interferometry (InSAR). Furthermore, UAVs have been utilized in similar data collection in a local scale, and also in collection of thermal infrared data for hydrological monitoring of the areas. The development and efficient use of the methods in mining areas requires experts from several fields. In addition, the Northern conditions with four distinct seasons bring their own challenges for the efficient use of remote sensing, and further complicate their integration as standardised monitoring methods for mine environments. Based on the initial results, remote sensing could especially enhance the monitoring of large-scale structures in mine areas such as tailings impoundments.

Multi-UAV Routing for Area Coverage and Remote Sensing with Minimum Time

PubMed Central

Avellar, Gustavo S. C.; Pereira, Guilherme A. S.; Pimenta, Luciano C. A.; Iscold, Paulo

2015-01-01

This paper presents a solution for the problem of minimum time coverage of ground areas using a group of unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) equipped with image sensors. The solution is divided into two parts: (i) the task modeling as a graph whose vertices are geographic coordinates determined in such a way that a single UAV would cover the area in minimum time; and (ii) the solution of a mixed integer linear programming problem, formulated according to the graph variables defined in the first part, to route the team of UAVs over the area. The main contribution of the proposed methodology, when compared with the traditional vehicle routing problem’s (VRP) solutions, is the fact that our method solves some practical problems only encountered during the execution of the task with actual UAVs. In this line, one of the main contributions of the paper is that the number of UAVs used to cover the area is automatically selected by solving the optimization problem. The number of UAVs is influenced by the vehicles’ maximum flight time and by the setup time, which is the time needed to prepare and launch a UAV. To illustrate the methodology, the paper presents experimental results obtained with two hand-launched, fixed-wing UAVs. PMID:26540055

Multi-UAV Routing for Area Coverage and Remote Sensing with Minimum Time.

PubMed

Avellar, Gustavo S C; Pereira, Guilherme A S; Pimenta, Luciano C A; Iscold, Paulo

2015-11-02

This paper presents a solution for the problem of minimum time coverage of ground areas using a group of unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) equipped with image sensors. The solution is divided into two parts: (i) the task modeling as a graph whose vertices are geographic coordinates determined in such a way that a single UAV would cover the area in minimum time; and (ii) the solution of a mixed integer linear programming problem, formulated according to the graph variables defined in the first part, to route the team of UAVs over the area. The main contribution of the proposed methodology, when compared with the traditional vehicle routing problem's (VRP) solutions, is the fact that our method solves some practical problems only encountered during the execution of the task with actual UAVs. In this line, one of the main contributions of the paper is that the number of UAVs used to cover the area is automatically selected by solving the optimization problem. The number of UAVs is influenced by the vehicles' maximum flight time and by the setup time, which is the time needed to prepare and launch a UAV. To illustrate the methodology, the paper presents experimental results obtained with two hand-launched, fixed-wing UAVs.

Current development of UAV sense and avoid system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhahir, A.; Razali, A.; Mohd Ajir, M. R.

2016-10-01

As unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are now gaining high interests from civil and commercialised market, the automatic sense and avoid (SAA) system is currently one of the essential features in research spotlight of UAV. Several sensor types employed in current SAA research and technology of sensor fusion that offers a great opportunity in improving detection and tracking system are presented here. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of SAA system development in general, as well as the current challenges facing UAV researchers and designers.

The pan-sharpening of satellite and UAV imagery for agricultural applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jenerowicz, Agnieszka; Woroszkiewicz, Malgorzata

2016-10-01

Remote sensing techniques are widely used in many different areas of interest, i.e. urban studies, environmental studies, agriculture, etc., due to fact that they provide rapid, accurate and information over large areas with optimal time, spatial and spectral resolutions. Agricultural management is one of the most common application of remote sensing methods nowadays. Monitoring of agricultural sites and creating information regarding spatial distribution and characteristics of crops are important tasks to provide data for precision agriculture, crop management and registries of agricultural lands. For monitoring of cultivated areas many different types of remote sensing data can be used- most popular are multispectral satellites imagery. Such data allow for generating land use and land cover maps, based on various methods of image processing and remote sensing methods. This paper presents fusion of satellite and unnamed aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery for agricultural applications, especially for distinguishing crop types. Authors in their article presented chosen data fusion methods for satellite images and data obtained from low altitudes. Moreover the authors described pan- sharpening approaches and applied chosen pan- sharpening methods for multiresolution image fusion of satellite and UAV imagery. For such purpose, satellite images from Landsat- 8 OLI sensor and data collected within various UAV flights (with mounted RGB camera) were used. In this article, the authors not only had shown the potential of fusion of satellite and UAV images, but also presented the application of pan- sharpening in crop identification and management.

An evaluation of a UAV guidance system with consumer grade GPS receivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosenberg, Abigail Stella

Remote sensing has been demonstrated an important tool in agricultural and natural resource management and research applications, however there are limitations that exist with traditional platforms (i.e., hand held sensors, linear moves, vehicle mounted, airplanes, remotely piloted vehicles (RPVs), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and satellites). Rapid technological advances in electronics, computers, software applications, and the aerospace industry have dramatically reduced the cost and increased the availability of remote sensing technologies. Remote sensing imagery vary in spectral, spatial, and temporal resolutions and are available from numerous providers. Appendix A presented results of a test project that acquired high-resolution aerial photography with a RPV to map the boundary of a 0.42 km2 fire area. The project mapped the boundaries of the fire area from a mosaic of the aerial images collected and compared this with ground-based measurements. The project achieved a 92.4% correlation between the aerial assessment and the ground truth data. Appendix B used multi-objective analysis to quantitatively assess the tradeoffs between different sensor platform attributes to identify the best overall technology. Experts were surveyed to identify the best overall technology at three different pixel sizes. Appendix C evaluated the positional accuracy of a relatively low cost UAV designed for high resolution remote sensing of small areas in order to determine the positional accuracy of sensor readings. The study evaluated the accuracy and uncertainty of a UAV flight route with respect to the programmed waypoints and of the UAV's GPS position, respectively. In addition, the potential displacement of sensor data was evaluated based on (1) GPS measurements on board the aircraft and (2) the autopilot's circuit board with 3-axis gyros and accelerometers (i.e., roll, pitch, and yaw). The accuracies were estimated based on a 95% confidence interval or similar methods. The

Spectral Imaging from Uavs Under Varying Illumination Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hakala, T.; Honkavaara, E.; Saari, H.; Mäkynen, J.; Kaivosoja, J.; Pesonen, L.; Pölönen, I.

2013-08-01

Rapidly developing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) have provided the remote sensing community with a new rapidly deployable tool for small area monitoring. The progress of small payload UAVs has introduced greater demand for light weight aerial payloads. For applications requiring aerial images, a simple consumer camera provides acceptable data. For applications requiring more detailed spectral information about the surface, a new Fabry-Perot interferometer based spectral imaging technology has been developed. This new technology produces tens of successive images of the scene at different wavelength bands in very short time. These images can be assembled in spectral data cubes with stereoscopic overlaps. On field the weather conditions vary and the UAV operator often has to decide between flight in sub optimal conditions and no flight. Our objective was to investigate methods for quantitative radiometric processing of images taken under varying illumination conditions, thus expanding the range of weather conditions during which successful imaging flights can be made. A new method that is based on insitu measurement of irradiance either in UAV platform or in ground was developed. We tested the methods in a precision agriculture application using realistic data collected in difficult illumination conditions. Internal homogeneity of the original image data (average coefficient of variation in overlapping images) was 0.14-0.18. In the corrected data, the homogeneity was 0.10-0.12 with a correction based on broadband irradiance measured in UAV, 0.07-0.09 with a correction based on spectral irradiance measurement on ground, and 0.05-0.08 with a radiometric block adjustment based on image data. Our results were very promising, indicating that quantitative UAV based remote sensing could be operational in diverse conditions, which is prerequisite for many environmental remote sensing applications.

Using Public Network Infrastructures for UAV Remote Sensing in Civilian Security Operations

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-03-01

leveraging public wireless communication networks for UAV-based sensor networks with respect to existing constraints and user requirements...Detection with an Autonomous Micro UAV Mesh Network . In the near future police departments, fire brigades and other homeland security ...UAV-based sensor networks with respect to existing constraints and user requirements. 15. SUBJECT TERMS 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17. LIMITATION

A UAV-based gas sensing system for detecting fugitive methane emissions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hugenholtz, C.; Barchyn, T.; Myshak, S.; Bauer, J.

2016-12-01

Methane is one of the most prevalent greenhouse gases emitted by human activities and is a major component of government-led initiatives to reduce GHG emissions in Canada, the USA, and elsewhere. In light of growing demand for measurements and verification of atmospheric methane concentration across the oil and gas supply chain, an autonomous airborne gas sensing system was developed that combines a small UAV and a lightweight gas monitor. This paper outlines the technology, analytics, and presents data from a case study to demonstrate the proof of concept. The UAV is a fixed-wing (2.2 m wingspan), battery-operated platform, with a flight endurance of 80-120 minutes. The gas sensor onboard the UAV is a tunable diode laser absorption spectrometer that uses an integrated transmitter/receiver unit and a remote, passive retro-reflector. The transmitter is attached to one of the winglets, while the other is coated with reflective material. The total weight of the UAV and gas sensor is 4.3 kg. During flight, the system operates autonomously, acquiring averages of raw measurements at 1 Hz, with a recorded resolution of 0.0455 ppm. The onboard measurement and control unit (MCU) for the gas sensor is integrated with the UAV autopilot in order to provide time-stamped and geotagged concentration measurements, and to provide real-time flight adjustments when concentration exceeds a pre-determined threshold. The data are retrieved from the MCU when the mission is complete. In order to demonstrate the proof of concept, we present results from a case study and outline opportunities for translating the measurements into decision making.

Low cost infrared and near infrared sensors for UAVs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aden, S. T.; Bialas, J. P.; Champion, Z.; Levin, E.; McCarty, J. L.

2014-11-01

Thermal remote sensing has a wide range of applications, though the extent of its use is inhibited by cost. Robotic and computer components are now widely available to consumers on a scale that makes thermal data a readily accessible resource. In this project, thermal imagery collected via a lightweight remote sensing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) was used to create a surface temperature map for the purpose of providing wildland firefighting crews with a cost-effective and time-saving resource. The UAV system proved to be flexible, allowing for customized sensor packages to be designed that could include visible or infrared cameras, GPS, temperature sensors, and rangefinders, in addition to many data management options. Altogether, such a UAV system could be used to rapidly collect thermal and aerial data, with a geographic accuracy of less than one meter.

In situ Volcanic Plume Monitoring with small Unmanned Aerial Systems for Cal/Val of Satellite Remote Sensing Data: CARTA-UAV 2013 Mission (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diaz, J. A.; Pieri, D. C.; Bland, G.; Fladeland, M. M.

2013-12-01

The development of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) with a variety of sensor packages, enables in situ and proximal remote sensing measurements of volcanic plumes. Using Costa Rican volcanoes as a Natural Laboratory, the University of Costa Rica as host institution, in collaboration with four NASA centers, have started an initiative to develop low-cost, field-deployable airborne platforms to perform volcanic gas & ash plume research, and in-situ volcanic monitoring in general, in conjunction with orbital assets and state-of-the-art models of plume transport and composition. Several gas sensors have been deployed into the active plume of Turrialba Volcano including a miniature mass spectrometer, and an electrochemical SO2 sensor system with temperature, pressure, relative humidity, and GPS sensors. Several different airborne platforms such as manned research aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, tethered balloons, as well as man-portable in-situ ground truth systems are being used for this research. Remote sensing data is also collected from the ASTER and OMI spaceborne instruments and compared with in situ data. The CARTA-UAV 2013 Mission deployment and follow up measurements successfully demonstrated a path to study and visualize gaseous volcanic emissions using mass spectrometer and gas sensor based instrumentation in harsh environment conditions to correlate in situ ground/airborne data with remote sensing satellite data for calibration and validation purposes. The deployment of such technology improves on our current capabilities to detect, analyze, monitor, model, and predict hazards presented to aircraft by volcanogenic ash clouds from active and impending volcanic eruptions.

Sense and avoid technology for Global Hawk and Predator UAVs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCalmont, John F.; Utt, James; Deschenes, Michael; Taylor, Michael J.

2005-05-01

The Sensors Directorate at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) along with Defense Research Associates, Inc. (DRA) conducted a flight demonstration of technology that could potentially satisfy the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) requirement for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to sense and avoid local air traffic sufficient to provide an "...equivalent level of safety, comparable to see-and-avoid requirements for manned aircraft". This FAA requirement must be satisfied for autonomous UAV operation within the national airspace. The real-time on-board system passively detects approaching aircraft, both cooperative and non-cooperative, using imaging sensors operating in the visible/near infrared band and a passive moving target indicator algorithm. Detection range requirements for RQ-4 and MQ-9 UAVs were determined based on analysis of flight geometries, avoidance maneuver timelines, system latencies and human pilot performance. Flight data and UAV operating parameters were provided by the system program offices, prime contractors, and flight-test personnel. Flight demonstrations were conducted using a surrogate UAV (Aero Commander) and an intruder aircraft (Beech Bonanza). The system demonstrated target detection ranges out to 3 nautical miles in nose-to-nose scenarios and marginal visual meteorological conditions. (VMC) This paper will describe the sense and avoid requirements definition process and the system concept (sensors, algorithms, processor, and flight rest results) that has demonstrated the potential to satisfy the FAA sense and avoid requirements.

The application of the unmanned aerial vehicle remote sensing technology in the FAST project construction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Boqin

2015-08-01

The purpose of using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remote sensing application in Five-hundred-meter aperture spherical telescope (FAST) project is to dynamically record the construction process with high resolution image, monitor the environmental impact, and provide services for local environmental protection and the reserve immigrants. This paper introduces the use of UAV remote sensing system and the course design and implementation for the FAST site. Through the analysis of the time series data, we found that: (1) since the year 2012, the project has been widely carried out; (2) till 2013, the internal project begun to take shape;(3) engineering excavation scope was kept stable in 2014, and the initial scale of the FAST engineering construction has emerged as in the meantime, the vegetation recovery went well on the bare soil area; (4) in 2015, none environmental problems caused by engineering construction and other engineering geological disaster were found in the work area through the image interpretation of UAV images. This paper also suggested that the UAV technology need some improvements to fulfill the requirements of surveying and mapping specification., including a new data acquisition and processing measures assigned with the background of highly diverse elevation, usage of telephoto camera, hierarchical photography with different flying height, and adjustment with terrain using the joint empty three settlement method.

Small unmanned aircraft systems for remote sensing and Earth science research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hugenholtz, Chris H.; Moorman, Brian J.; Riddell, Kevin; Whitehead, Ken

2012-06-01

To understand and predict Earth-surface dynamics, scientists often rely on access to the latest remote sensing data. Over the past several decades, considerable progress has been made in the development of specialized Earth observation sensors for measuring a wide range of processes and features. Comparatively little progress has been made, however, in the development of new platforms upon which these sensors can be deployed. Conventional platforms are still almost exclusively restricted to piloted aircraft and satellites. For many Earth science research questions and applications these platforms do not yet have the resolution or operational flexibility to provide answers affordably. The most effective remote sensing data match the spatiotemporal scale of the process or feature of interest. An emerging technology comprising unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), is poised to offer a viable alternative to conventional platforms for acquiring high-resolution remote sensing data with increased operational flexibility, lower cost, and greater versatility (Figure 1).

Evaluating the accuracy of orthophotos and 3D models from UAV photogrammetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Julge, Kalev; Ellmann, Artu

2015-04-01

Rapid development of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in recent years has made their use for various applications more feasible. This contribution evaluates the accuracy and quality of different UAV remote sensing products (i.e. orthorectified image, point cloud and 3D model). Two different autonomous fixed wing UAV systems were used to collect the aerial photographs. One is a mass-produced commercial UAV system, the other is a similar state-of-the-art UAV system. Three different study areas with varying sizes and characteristics (including urban areas, forests, fields, etc.) were surveyed. The UAV point clouds, 3D models and orthophotos were generated with three different commercial and free-ware software. The performance of each of these was evaluated. The effect of flying height on the accuracy of the results was explored, as well as the optimum number and placement of ground control points. Also the achieved results, when the only georeferencing data originates from the UAV system's on-board GNSS and inertial measurement unit, are investigated. Problems regarding the alignment of certain types of aerial photos (e.g. captured over forested areas) are discussed. The quality and accuracy of UAV photogrammetry products are evaluated by comparing them with control measurements made with GNSS-measurements on the ground, as well as high-resolution airborne laser scanning data and other available orthophotos (e.g. those acquired for large scale national mapping). Vertical comparisons are made on surfaces that have remained unchanged in all campaigns, e.g. paved roads. Planar comparisons are performed by control surveys of objects that are clearly identifiable on orthophotos. The statistics of these differences are used to evaluate the accuracy of UAV remote sensing. Some recommendations are given on how to conduct UAV mapping campaigns cost-effectively and with minimal time-consumption while still ensuring the quality and accuracy of the UAV data products. Also the

Automated geographic registration and radiometric correction for UAV-based mosaics

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Texas A&M University has been operating a large-scale, UAV-based, agricultural remote-sensing research project since 2015. To use UAV-based images in agricultural production, many high-resolution images must be mosaicked together to create an image of an agricultural field. Two key difficulties to s...

Hurricane Harvey Building Damage Assessment Using UAV Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeom, J.; Jung, J.; Chang, A.; Choi, I.

2017-12-01

Hurricane Harvey which was extremely destructive major hurricane struck southern Texas, U.S.A on August 25, causing catastrophic flooding and storm damages. We visited Rockport suffered severe building destruction and conducted UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) surveying for building damage assessment. UAV provides very high resolution images compared with traditional remote sensing data. In addition, prompt and cost-effective damage assessment can be performed regardless of several limitations in other remote sensing platforms such as revisit interval of satellite platforms, complicated flight plan in aerial surveying, and cloud amounts. In this study, UAV flight and GPS surveying were conducted two weeks after hurricane damage to generate an orthomosaic image and a DEM (Digital Elevation Model). 3D region growing scheme has been proposed to quantitatively estimate building damages considering building debris' elevation change and spectral difference. The result showed that the proposed method can be used for high definition building damage assessment in a time- and cost-effective way.

Selectable Hyperspectral Airborne Remote-sensing Kit (SHARK) on the Vision II turbine rotorcraft UAV over the Florida Keys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holasek, R. E.; Nakanishi, K.; Swartz, B.; Zacaroli, R.; Hill, B.; Naungayan, J.; Herwitz, S.; Kavros, P.; English, D. C.

2013-12-01

As part of the NASA ROSES program, the NovaSol Selectable Hyperspectral Airborne Remote-sensing Kit (SHARK) was flown as the payload on the unmanned Vision II helicopter. The goal of the May 2013 data collection was to obtain high resolution visible and near-infrared (visNIR) hyperspectral data of seagrasses and coral reefs in the Florida Keys. The specifications of the SHARK hyperspectral system and the Vision II turbine rotorcraft will be described along with the process of integrating the payload to the vehicle platform. The minimal size, weight, and power (SWaP) specifications of the SHARK system is an ideal match to the Vision II helicopter and its flight parameters. One advantage of the helicopter over fixed wing platforms is its inherent ability to take off and land in a limited area and without a runway, enabling the UAV to be located in close proximity to the experiment areas and the science team. Decisions regarding integration times, waypoint selection, mission duration, and mission frequency are able to be based upon the local environmental conditions and can be modified just prior to take off. The operational procedures and coordination between the UAV pilot, payload operator, and scientist will be described. The SHARK system includes an inertial navigation system and digital elevation model (DEM) which allows image coordinates to be calculated onboard the aircraft in real-time. Examples of the geo-registered images from the data collection will be shown. SHARK mounted below VTUAV. SHARK deployed on VTUAV over water.

Integrating UAV and orbital remote sensing for spatiotemporal assessment of coastal vegetation health following hurricane events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bernardes, S.; Madden, M.; Jordan, T.; Knight, A.; Aragon, A.

2017-12-01

Hurricane impacts often include the total or partial removal of vegetation due to strong winds (e.g., uprooted trees and broken trunks and limbs). Those impacts can usually be quickly assessed following hurricanes, by using established field and remote sensing methods. Conversely, impacts on vegetation health may present challenges for identification and assessment, as they are disconnected in time from the hurricane event and may be less evident. For instance, hurricanes may promote drastic increases in salinity of water available to roots and may increase exposure of aerial parts to salt spray. Derived stress conditions can negatively impact biological processes and may lead to plant decline and death. Large areas along the coast of the United States have been affected by hurricanes and show such damage (vegetation browning). Those areas may continue to be impacted, as climate projections indicate that hurricanes may become more frequent and intense, resulting from the warming of ocean waters. This work uses remote sensing tools and techniques to record and assess impacts resulting from recent hurricanes at Sapelo Island, a barrier island off the coast of the State of Georgia, United States. Analyses included change detection at the island using time series of co-registered Sentinel 2 and Landsat images. A field campaign was conducted in September 2017, which included flying three UAVs over the island and collecting high-overlap 20-megapixel RGB images at two spatial resolutions (1 and 2 inches/pixel). A five-band MicaSense RedEdge camera, a downwelling radiation sensor and calibration panel were used to collect calibrated multispectral images of multiple vegetation types, including healthy vegetation and vegetation affected by browning. Drone images covering over 600 acres were then analyzed for vegetation status and damage, with emphasis to vegetation removal and browning resulting from salinity alterations and salt spray. Results from images acquired by drones

Uav-Based 3d Urban Environment Monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boonpook, Wuttichai; Tan, Yumin; Liu, Huaqing; Zhao, Binbin; He, Lingfeng

2018-04-01

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) based remote sensing can be used to make three-dimensions (3D) mapping with great flexibility, besides the ability to provide high resolution images. In this paper we propose a quick-change detection method on UAV images by combining altitude from Digital Surface Model (DSM) and texture analysis from images. Cases of UAV images with and without georeferencing are both considered. Research results show that the accuracy of change detection can be enhanced with georeferencing procedure, and the accuracy and precision of change detection on UAV images which are collected both vertically and obliquely but without georeferencing also have a good performance.

Remote sensing systems – Platforms and sensors: Aerial, satellites, UAVs, optical, radar, and LiDAR: Chapter 1

USGS Publications Warehouse

Panda, Sudhanshu S.; Rao, Mahesh N.; Thenkabail, Prasad S.; Fitzerald, James E.

2015-01-01

The American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing defined remote sensing as the measurement or acquisition of information of some property of an object or phenomenon, by a recording device that is not in physical or intimate contact with the object or phenomenon under study (Colwell et al., 1983). Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) in its geographic information system (GIS) dictionary defines remote sensing as “collecting and interpreting information about the environment and the surface of the earth from a distance, primarily by sensing radiation that is naturally emitted or reflected by the earth’s surface or from the atmosphere, or by sending signals transmitted from a device and reflected back to it (ESRI, 2014).” The usual source of passive remote sensing data is the measurement of reflected or transmitted electromagnetic radiation (EMR) from the sun across the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS); this can also include acoustic or sound energy, gravity, or the magnetic field from or of the objects under consideration. In this context, the simple act of reading this text is considered remote sensing. In this case, the eye acts as a sensor and senses the light reflected from the object to obtain information about the object. It is the same technology used by a handheld camera to take a photograph of a person or a distant scenic view. Active remote sensing, however, involves sending a pulse of energy and then measuring the returned energy through a sensor (e.g., Radio Detection and Ranging [RADAR], Light Detection and Ranging [LiDAR]). Thermal sensors measure emitted energy by different objects. Thus, in general, passive remote sensing involves the measurement of solar energy reflected from the Earth’s surface, while active remote sensing involves synthetic (man-made) energy pulsed at the environment and the return signals are measured and recorded.

Comparison of Random Forest and Support Vector Machine classifiers using UAV remote sensing imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piragnolo, Marco; Masiero, Andrea; Pirotti, Francesco

2017-04-01

Since recent years surveying with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) is getting a great amount of attention due to decreasing costs, higher precision and flexibility of usage. UAVs have been applied for geomorphological investigations, forestry, precision agriculture, cultural heritage assessment and for archaeological purposes. It can be used for land use and land cover classification (LULC). In literature, there are two main types of approaches for classification of remote sensing imagery: pixel-based and object-based. On one hand, pixel-based approach mostly uses training areas to define classes and respective spectral signatures. On the other hand, object-based classification considers pixels, scale, spatial information and texture information for creating homogeneous objects. Machine learning methods have been applied successfully for classification, and their use is increasing due to the availability of faster computing capabilities. The methods learn and train the model from previous computation. Two machine learning methods which have given good results in previous investigations are Random Forest (RF) and Support Vector Machine (SVM). The goal of this work is to compare RF and SVM methods for classifying LULC using images collected with a fixed wing UAV. The processing chain regarding classification uses packages in R, an open source scripting language for data analysis, which provides all necessary algorithms. The imagery was acquired and processed in November 2015 with cameras providing information over the red, blue, green and near infrared wavelength reflectivity over a testing area in the campus of Agripolis, in Italy. Images were elaborated and ortho-rectified through Agisoft Photoscan. The ortho-rectified image is the full data set, and the test set is derived from partial sub-setting of the full data set. Different tests have been carried out, using a percentage from 2 % to 20 % of the total. Ten training sets and ten validation sets are obtained from

Portable Imagery Quality Assessment Test Field for Uav Sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dąbrowski, R.; Jenerowicz, A.

2015-08-01

Nowadays the imagery data acquired from UAV sensors are the main source of all data used in various remote sensing applications, photogrammetry projects and in imagery intelligence (IMINT) as well as in other tasks as decision support. Therefore quality assessment of such imagery is an important task. The research team from Military University of Technology, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Geodesy Institute, Department of Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry has designed and prepared special test field- The Portable Imagery Quality Assessment Test Field (PIQuAT) that provides quality assessment in field conditions of images obtained with sensors mounted on UAVs. The PIQuAT consists of 6 individual segments, when combined allow for determine radiometric, spectral and spatial resolution of images acquired from UAVs. All segments of the PIQuAT can be used together in various configurations or independently. All elements of The Portable Imagery Quality Assessment Test Field were tested in laboratory conditions in terms of their radiometry and spectral reflectance characteristics.

Design and implementation of a remote UAV-based mobile health monitoring system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Songwei; Wan, Yan; Fu, Shengli; Liu, Mushuang; Wu, H. Felix

2017-04-01

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) play increasing roles in structure health monitoring. With growing mobility in modern Internet-of-Things (IoT) applications, the health monitoring of mobile structures becomes an emerging application. In this paper, we develop a UAV-carried vision-based monitoring system that allows a UAV to continuously track and monitor a mobile infrastructure and transmit back the monitoring information in real- time from a remote location. The monitoring system uses a simple UAV-mounted camera and requires only a single feature located on the mobile infrastructure for target detection and tracking. The computation-effective vision-based tracking solution based on a single feature is an improvement over existing vision-based lead-follower tracking systems that either have poor tracking performance due to the use of a single feature, or have improved tracking performance at a cost of the usage of multiple features. In addition, a UAV-carried aerial networking infrastructure using directional antennas is used to enable robust real-time transmission of monitoring video streams over a long distance. Automatic heading control is used to self-align headings of directional antennas to enable robust communication in mobility. Compared to existing omni-communication systems, the directional communication solution significantly increases the operation range of remote monitoring systems. In this paper, we develop the integrated modeling framework of camera and mobile platforms, design the tracking algorithm, develop a testbed of UAVs and mobile platforms, and evaluate system performance through both simulation studies and field tests.

Thermocouple-based Temperature Sensing System for Chemical Cell Inside Micro UAV Device

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Yanhui; Feng, Yue; Lou, Haozhe; Zhang, Xinzhao

2018-03-01

Environmental temperature of UAV system is crucial for chemical cell component inside. Once the temperature of this chemical cell is over 259 °C and keeps more than 20 min, the high thermal accumulation would result in an explosion, which seriously damage the whole UAV system. Therefore, we develop a micro temperature sensing system for monitoring the temperature of chemical cell thermally influenced by UAV device deployed in a 300 °C temperature environment, which is quite useful for insensitive munitions and UAV safety enhancement technologies.

A Novel Methodology for Improving Plant Pest Surveillance in Vineyards and Crops Using UAV-Based Hyperspectral and Spatial Data

PubMed Central

Vanegas, Fernando; Weiss, John; Gonzalez, Felipe

2018-01-01

Recent advances in remote sensed imagery and geospatial image processing using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have enabled the rapid and ongoing development of monitoring tools for crop management and the detection/surveillance of insect pests. This paper describes a (UAV) remote sensing-based methodology to increase the efficiency of existing surveillance practices (human inspectors and insect traps) for detecting pest infestations (e.g., grape phylloxera in vineyards). The methodology uses a UAV integrated with advanced digital hyperspectral, multispectral, and RGB sensors. We implemented the methodology for the development of a predictive model for phylloxera detection. In this method, we explore the combination of airborne RGB, multispectral, and hyperspectral imagery with ground-based data at two separate time periods and under different levels of phylloxera infestation. We describe the technology used—the sensors, the UAV, and the flight operations—the processing workflow of the datasets from each imagery type, and the methods for combining multiple airborne with ground-based datasets. Finally, we present relevant results of correlation between the different processed datasets. The objective of this research is to develop a novel methodology for collecting, processing, analysing and integrating multispectral, hyperspectral, ground and spatial data to remote sense different variables in different applications, such as, in this case, plant pest surveillance. The development of such methodology would provide researchers, agronomists, and UAV practitioners reliable data collection protocols and methods to achieve faster processing techniques and integrate multiple sources of data in diverse remote sensing applications. PMID:29342101

A Novel Methodology for Improving Plant Pest Surveillance in Vineyards and Crops Using UAV-Based Hyperspectral and Spatial Data.

PubMed

Vanegas, Fernando; Bratanov, Dmitry; Powell, Kevin; Weiss, John; Gonzalez, Felipe

2018-01-17

Recent advances in remote sensed imagery and geospatial image processing using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have enabled the rapid and ongoing development of monitoring tools for crop management and the detection/surveillance of insect pests. This paper describes a (UAV) remote sensing-based methodology to increase the efficiency of existing surveillance practices (human inspectors and insect traps) for detecting pest infestations (e.g., grape phylloxera in vineyards). The methodology uses a UAV integrated with advanced digital hyperspectral, multispectral, and RGB sensors. We implemented the methodology for the development of a predictive model for phylloxera detection. In this method, we explore the combination of airborne RGB, multispectral, and hyperspectral imagery with ground-based data at two separate time periods and under different levels of phylloxera infestation. We describe the technology used-the sensors, the UAV, and the flight operations-the processing workflow of the datasets from each imagery type, and the methods for combining multiple airborne with ground-based datasets. Finally, we present relevant results of correlation between the different processed datasets. The objective of this research is to develop a novel methodology for collecting, processing, analising and integrating multispectral, hyperspectral, ground and spatial data to remote sense different variables in different applications, such as, in this case, plant pest surveillance. The development of such methodology would provide researchers, agronomists, and UAV practitioners reliable data collection protocols and methods to achieve faster processing techniques and integrate multiple sources of data in diverse remote sensing applications.

Research Status and Development Trend of Remote Sensing in China Using Bibliometric Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zeng, Y.; Zhang, J.; Niu, R.

2015-06-01

Remote sensing was introduced into China in 1970s and then began to flourish. At present, China has developed into a big remote sensing country, and remote sensing is increasingly playing an important role in various fields of national economic construction and social development. Based on China Academic Journals Full-text Database and China Citation Database published by China National Knowledge Infrastructure, this paper analyzed academic characteristics of 963 highly cited papers published by 16 professional and academic journals in the field of surveying and mapping from January 2010 to December 2014 in China, which include hot topics, literature authors, research institutions, and fundations. At the same time, it studied a total of 51,149 keywords published by these 16 journals during the same period. Firstly by keyword selection, keyword normalization, keyword consistency and keyword incorporation, and then by analysis of high frequency keywords, the progress and prospect of China's remote sensing technology in data acquisition, data processing and applications during the past five years were further explored and revealed. It can be seen that: highly cited paper analysis and word frequency analysis is complementary on subject progress analysis; in data acquisition phase, research focus is new civilian remote sensing satellite systems and UAV remote sensing system; research focus of data processing and analysis is multi-source information extraction and classification, laser point cloud data processing, objectoriented high resolution image analysis, SAR data and hyper-spectral image processing, etc.; development trend of remote sensing data processing is quantitative, intelligent, automated, and real-time, and the breadth and depth of remote sensing application is gradually increased; parallel computing, cloud computing and geographic conditions monitoring and census are the new research focuses to be paid attention to.

UAV-LiDAR accuracy and comparison to Structure from Motion photogrammetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kucharczyk, M.; Hugenholtz, C.; Zou, X.; Nesbit, P. R.; Barchyn, T.

2016-12-01

We compare the spatial accuracy of a UAV-LiDAR system with Structure from Motion (SfM) photogrammetry. UAV-based LiDAR remote sensing potentially offers advantages over SfM photogrammetry in vegetated terrain, particularly with respect to canopy penetration and related measurements of ground surface elevation and vegetation height; however, little quantitative evidence has been presented to date. To address this, we performed a case study at a field site in Alberta, Canada with six different land cover types: short grass, tall grass, short shrubs, tall shrubs, deciduous trees, and coniferous trees. Both UAV datasets were acquired on the same day. The SfM dataset was derived from images acquired by a senseFly eBee fixed-wing UAV equipped with a 16.1 megapixel RGB camera. The UAV-LiDAR system is a proprietary design that consists of a single-rotor helicopter (2-m rotor diameter) equipped with a Riegl VUX-1UAV laser scanner, KVH 1750 inertial measurement unit, and dual NovAtel GNSS receivers. We measured vegetation height from at least 30 samples in each land cover type and acquired check point measurements to determine horizontal and vertical accuracy. Vegetation height was measured manually for grasses and shrubs with a level staff, and with a total station for trees. Coordinates of horizontal and vertical check points were surveyed with real-time kinematic (RTK) GNSS. We followed standard methods for computing horizontal and vertical accuracies based on the 2015 guidelines from the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. Results will be presented at the AGU Fall Meeting.

Multi-resource data-based research on remote sensing monitoring over the green tide in the Yellow Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Zhiqiang; Xu, Fuxiang; Song, Debin; Zheng, Xiangyu; Chen, Maosi

2017-09-01

This paper conducted dynamic monitoring over the green tide (large green alga—Ulva prolifera) occurred in the Yellow Sea in 2014 to 2016 by the use of multi-source remote sensing data, including GF-1 WFV, HJ-1A/1B CCD, CBERS-04 WFI, Landsat-7 ETM+ and Landsta-8 OLI, and by the combination of VB-FAH (index of Virtual-Baseline Floating macroAlgae Height) with manual assisted interpretation based on remote sensing and geographic information system technologies. The result shows that unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and shipborne platform could accurately monitor the distribution of Ulva prolifera in small spaces, and therefore provide validation data for the result of remote sensing monitoring over Ulva prolifera. The result of this research can provide effective information support for the prevention and control of Ulva prolifera.

Stratospheric platforms: a novel technological support for Earth observation and remote sensing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dovis, Fabio; Lo Presti, Letizia; Magli, Enrico; Mulassano, Paolo; Olmo, Gabriella

2001-12-01

The international community agrees that the new technology based on the use of Unmanned Air Vehicles High Altitude Very long Endurance (UAV-HAVE) could play an important role for the development of remote sensing and telecommunication applications. A UAV-HAVE vehicle can be described as a low- cost flying infrastructure (compared with satellites) optimized for long endurance operations at an altitude of about 20 km. Due to such features, its role is similar to satellites, with the major advantages of being less expensive, more flexible, movable on demand, and suitable for a larger class of applications. According to this background, Politecnico di Torino is involved as coordinator in an important project named HeliNet, that represent one of the main activities in Europe in the field of stratospheric platforms, and is concerned with the development of a network of UAV-HAVE aircraft. A key point of this project is the feasibility study for the provision of several services, namely traffic monitoring, environmental surveillance, broadband communications and navigation. This paper reports preliminary results on the HeliNet imaging system and its remote sensing applications. In fact, many environmental surveillance services (e.g. regional public services for agriculture, hydrology, fire protection, and more) require very high-resolution imaging, and can be offered at a lower cost if operated by a shared platform. The philosophy behind the HeliNet project seems to be particularly suitable to manage such missions. In particular, we present a system- level study of possible imaging payloads to be mounted on- board of a stratospheric platform to collect Earth observation data. Firstly, we address optical payloads such as multispectral and/or hyperspectral ones, which are a very short-term objective of the project. Secondly, as an example of mid-term on-board payload, we examine the possibility to carry on the platform a light-SAR system. For both types of payload, we show

Demonstration of UAV deployment and control of mobile wireless sensing networks for modal analysis of structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Hao; Hirose, Mitsuhito; Greenwood, William; Xiao, Yong; Lynch, Jerome; Zekkos, Dimitrios; Kamat, Vineet

2016-04-01

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can serve as a powerful mobile sensing platform for assessing the health of civil infrastructure systems. To date, the majority of their uses have been dedicated to vision and laser-based spatial imaging using on-board cameras and LiDAR units, respectively. Comparatively less work has focused on integration of other sensing modalities relevant to structural monitoring applications. The overarching goal of this study is to explore the ability for UAVs to deploy a network of wireless sensors on structures for controlled vibration testing. The study develops a UAV platform with an integrated robotic gripper that can be used to install wireless sensors in structures, drop a heavy weight for the introduction of impact loads, and to uninstall wireless sensors for reinstallation elsewhere. A pose estimation algorithm is embedded in the UAV to estimate the location of the UAV during sensor placement and impact load introduction. The Martlet wireless sensor network architecture is integrated with the UAV to provide the UAV a mobile sensing capability. The UAV is programmed to command field deployed Martlets, aggregate and temporarily store data from the wireless sensor network, and to communicate data to a fixed base station on site. This study demonstrates the integrated UAV system using a simply supported beam in the lab with Martlet wireless sensors placed by the UAV and impact load testing performed. The study verifies the feasibility of the integrated UAV-wireless monitoring system architecture with accurate modal characteristics of the beam estimated by modal analysis.

Propagation Limitations in Remote Sensing.

DTIC Science & Technology

Contents: Multi-sensors and systems in remote sensing ; Radar sensing systems over land; Remote sensing techniques in oceanography; Influence of...propagation media and background; Infrared techniques in remote sensing ; Photography in remote sensing ; Analytical studies in remote sensing .

Characterization of Vegetation using the UC Davis Remote Sensing Testbed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Falk, M.; Hart, Q. J.; Bowen, K. S.; Ustin, S. L.

2006-12-01

Remote sensing provides information about the dynamics of the terrestrial biosphere with continuous spatial and temporal coverage on many different scales. We present the design and construction of a suite of instrument modules and network infrastructure with size, weight and power constraints suitable for small scale vehicles, anticipating vigorous growth in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and other mobile platforms. Our approach provides the rapid deployment and low cost acquisition of high aerial imagery for applications requiring high spatial resolution and revisits. The testbed supports a wide range of applications, encourages remote sensing solutions in new disciplines and demonstrates the complete range of engineering knowledge required for the successful deployment of remote sensing instruments. The initial testbed is deployed on a Sig Kadet Senior remote controlled plane. It includes an onboard computer with wireless radio, GPS, inertia measurement unit, 3-axis electronic compass and digital cameras. The onboard camera is either a RGB digital camera or a modified digital camera with red and NIR channels. Cameras were calibrated using selective light sources, an integrating spheres and a spectrometer, allowing for the computation of vegetation indices such as the NDVI. Field tests to date have investigated technical challenges in wireless communication bandwidth limits, automated image geolocation, and user interfaces; as well as image applications such as environmental landscape mapping focusing on Sudden Oak Death and invasive species detection, studies on the impact of bird colonies on tree canopies, and precision agriculture.

Thermal Remote Sensing with Uav-Based Workflows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boesch, R.

2017-08-01

Climate change will have a significant influence on vegetation health and growth. Predictions of higher mean summer temperatures and prolonged summer draughts may pose a threat to agriculture areas and forest canopies. Rising canopy temperatures can be an indicator of plant stress because of the closure of stomata and a decrease in the transpiration rate. Thermal cameras are available for decades, but still often used for single image analysis, only in oblique view manner or with visual evaluations of video sequences. Therefore remote sensing using a thermal camera can be an important data source to understand transpiration processes. Photogrammetric workflows allow to process thermal images similar to RGB data. But low spatial resolution of thermal cameras, significant optical distortion and typically low contrast require an adapted workflow. Temperature distribution in forest canopies is typically completely unknown and less distinct than for urban or industrial areas, where metal constructions and surfaces yield high contrast and sharp edge information. The aim of this paper is to investigate the influence of interior camera orientation, tie point matching and ground control points on the resulting accuracy of bundle adjustment and dense cloud generation with a typically used photogrammetric workflow for UAVbased thermal imagery in natural environments.

Comparison of Uncalibrated Rgbvi with Spectrometer-Based Ndvi Derived from Uav Sensing Systems on Field Scale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bareth, G.; Bolten, A.; Gnyp, M. L.; Reusch, S.; Jasper, J.

2016-06-01

The development of UAV-based sensing systems for agronomic applications serves the improvement of crop management. The latter is in the focus of precision agriculture which intends to optimize yield, fertilizer input, and crop protection. Besides, in some cropping systems vehicle-based sensing devices are less suitable because fields cannot be entered from certain growing stages onwards. This is true for rice, maize, sorghum, and many more crops. Consequently, UAV-based sensing approaches fill a niche of very high resolution data acquisition on the field scale in space and time. While mounting RGB digital compact cameras to low-weight UAVs (< 5 kg) is well established, the miniaturization of sensors in the last years also enables hyperspectral data acquisition from those platforms. From both, RGB and hyperspectral data, vegetation indices (VIs) are computed to estimate crop growth parameters. In this contribution, we compare two different sensing approaches from a low-weight UAV platform (< 5 kg) for monitoring a nitrogen field experiment of winter wheat and a corresponding farmers' field in Western Germany. (i) A standard digital compact camera was flown to acquire RGB images which are used to compute the RGBVI and (ii) NDVI is computed from a newly modified version of the Yara N-Sensor. The latter is a well-established tractor-based hyperspectral sensor for crop management and is available on the market since a decade. It was modified for this study to fit the requirements of UAV-based data acquisition. Consequently, we focus on three objectives in this contribution: (1) to evaluate the potential of the uncalibrated RGBVI for monitoring nitrogen status in winter wheat, (2) investigate the UAV-based performance of the modified Yara N-Sensor, and (3) compare the results of the two different UAV-based sensing approaches for winter wheat.

[Thematic Issue: Remote Sensing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howkins, John, Ed.

1978-01-01

Four of the articles in this publication discuss the remote sensing of the Earth and its resources by satellites. Among the topics dealt with are the development and management of remote sensing systems, types of satellites used for remote sensing, the uses of remote sensing, and issues involved in using information obtained through remote…

Application of Multi-Source Remote Sensing Image in Yunnan Province Grassland Resources Investigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, J.; Wen, G.; Li, D.

2018-04-01

Trough mastering background information of Yunnan province grassland resources utilization and ecological conditions to improves grassland elaborating management capacity, it carried out grassland resource investigation work by Yunnan province agriculture department in 2017. The traditional grassland resource investigation method is ground based investigation, which is time-consuming and inefficient, especially not suitable for large scale and hard-to-reach areas. While remote sensing is low cost, wide range and efficient, which can reflect grassland resources present situation objectively. It has become indispensable grassland monitoring technology and data sources and it has got more and more recognition and application in grassland resources monitoring research. This paper researches application of multi-source remote sensing image in Yunnan province grassland resources investigation. First of all, it extracts grassland resources thematic information and conducts field investigation through BJ-2 high space resolution image segmentation. Secondly, it classifies grassland types and evaluates grassland degradation degree through high resolution characteristics of Landsat 8 image. Thirdly, it obtained grass yield model and quality classification through high resolution and wide scanning width characteristics of MODIS images and sample investigate data. Finally, it performs grassland field qualitative analysis through UAV remote sensing image. According to project area implementation, it proves that multi-source remote sensing data can be applied to the grassland resources investigation in Yunnan province and it is indispensable method.

Remote Sensing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Richard S., Jr.; Southworth, C. Scott

1983-01-01

The Landsat Program became the major event of 1982 in geological remote sensing with the successful launch of Landsat 4. Other 1982 remote sensing accomplishments, research, publications, (including a set of Landsat worldwide reference system index maps), and conferences are highlighted. (JN)

Using remote sensing for volumetric analyses of soil degradation by erosion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vlacilova, Marketa; Krasa, Josef; Kavka, Petr

2014-05-01

Soil degradation by erosion can be effectively monitored or quantified by modern tools of remote sensing with variable level of detail accessible. The presented study deals with rill erosion assessment using stereoscopic images and orthophotos obtained by UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle). Advantages of UAVs are data in high resolution (1-10 cm/pixel), flexibility of data acquisition and price in comparison with standard aerial photography. Location attacked by intensive rainfall event in the spring 2013 was selected for this study of volumetric assessment of soil degradation by erosion. After the storm, rills and ephemeral gullies in different scales were detected on several fields in the target area. The study was focused on a single parcel catchment (12.5 ha) which attach to the main ephemeral gully in the monitored field. DEM of the location was obtained from UAV stereo images and official LIDAR data. At the same time, in-situ monitoring was effected for comparison and validation of methodology. The field measurement consisted of soil sampling and taking detailed stereo photographs of erosion rills. The photographs were processed by PhotoModeler Scanner software to obtain detailed surface data (TIN) of particular rills. The model for automatic and precise volumetric assessment of single rills was developed within ArcGIS. The whole study area DEM obtained from UAV was also analysed in ArcGIS using similar methodology for computation of rill volumes. The UAV DEM detected most rill bottoms and shapes however the level of detail was too low for actual sediment transport volume estimate. Therefore the volume obtained from UAV DEM was calibrated by the detailed models of single rills acquired by field measurement. Prior the calibration the UAV DEM volume was underestimated by 40-85% based on the rill size. Afterwards the target area was split into twelve separated regions defined by intensity and form of soil degradation (orthophoto-classified rill density). Equally, at

High Resolution Stratigraphic Mapping in Complex Terrain: A Comparison of Traditional Remote Sensing Techniques with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle - Structure from Motion Photogrammetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nesbit, P. R.; Hugenholtz, C.; Durkin, P.; Hubbard, S. M.; Kucharczyk, M.; Barchyn, T.

2016-12-01

Remote sensing and digital mapping have started to revolutionize geologic mapping in recent years as a result of their realized potential to provide high resolution 3D models of outcrops to assist with interpretation, visualization, and obtaining accurate measurements of inaccessible areas. However, in stratigraphic mapping applications in complex terrain, it is difficult to acquire information with sufficient detail at a wide spatial coverage with conventional techniques. We demonstrate the potential of a UAV and Structure from Motion (SfM) photogrammetric approach for improving 3D stratigraphic mapping applications within a complex badland topography. Our case study is performed in Dinosaur Provincial Park (Alberta, Canada), mapping late Cretaceous fluvial meander belt deposits of the Dinosaur Park formation amidst a succession of steeply sloping hills and abundant drainages - creating a challenge for stratigraphic mapping. The UAV-SfM dataset (2 cm spatial resolution) is compared directly with a combined satellite and aerial LiDAR dataset (30 cm spatial resolution) to reveal advantages and limitations of each dataset before presenting a unique workflow that utilizes the dense point cloud from the UAV-SfM dataset for analysis. The UAV-SfM dense point cloud minimizes distortion, preserves 3D structure, and records an RGB attribute - adding potential value in future studies. The proposed UAV-SfM workflow allows for high spatial resolution remote sensing of stratigraphy in complex topographic environments. This extended capability can add value to field observations and has the potential to be integrated with subsurface petroleum models.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) associated DTM quality evaluation and hazard assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Mei-Jen; Chen, Shao-Der; Chao, Yu-Jui; Chiang, Yi-Lin; Chang, Kuo-Jen

2014-05-01

Taiwan, due to the high seismicity and high annual rainfall, numerous landslides triggered every year and severe impacts affect the island. Concerning to the catastrophic landslides, the key information of landslide, including range of landslide, volume estimation and the subsequent evolution are important when analyzing the triggering mechanism, hazard assessment and mitigation. Thus, the morphological analysis gives a general overview for the landslides and been considered as one of the most fundamental information. We try to integrate several technologies, especially by Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and multi-spectral camera, to decipher the consequence and the potential hazard, and the social impact. In recent years, the remote sensing technology improves rapidly, providing a wide range of image, essential and precious information. Benefited of the advancing of informatics, remote-sensing and electric technologies, the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) photogrammetry mas been improve significantly. The study tries to integrate several methods, including, 1) Remote-sensing images gathered by Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and by aerial photos taken in different periods; 2) field in-situ geologic investigation; 3) Differential GPS, RTK GPS and Ground LiDAR field in-site geoinfomatics measurements; 4) Construct the DTMs before and after landslide, as well as the subsequent periods using UAV and aerial photos; 5) Discrete element method should be applied to understand the geomaterial composing the slope failure, for predicting earthquake-induced and rainfall-induced landslides displacement. First at all, we evaluate the Microdrones MD4-1000 UAV airphotos derived Digital Terrain Model (DTM). The ground resolution of the DSM point cloud of could be as high as 10 cm. By integrated 4 ground control point within an area of 56 hectares, compared with LiDAR DSM and filed RTK-GPS surveying, the mean error is as low as 6cm with a standard deviation of 17cm. The quality of the

REMOTE SENSING TECHNOLOGIES APPLICATIONS RESEARCH

EPA Science Inventory

Remote sensing technologies applications research supports the ORD Landscape Sciences Program (LSP) in two separate areas: operational remote sensing, and remote sensing research and development. Operational remote sensing is provided to the LSP through the use of current and t...

Use of UAVs for Remote Measurement of Vegetation Canopy Variables

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rango, A.; Laliberte, A.; Herrick, J.; Steele, C.; Bestelmeyer, B.; Chopping, M. J.

2006-12-01

Remote sensing with different sensors has proven useful for measuring vegetation canopy variables at scales ranging from landscapes down to individual plants. For use at landscape scales, such as desert grasslands invaded by shrubs, it is possible to use multi-angle imagery from satellite sensors, such as MISR and CHRIS/Proba, with geometric optical models to retrieve fractional woody plant cover. Vegetation community states can be mapped using visible and near infrared ASTER imagery at 15 m resolution. At finer scales, QuickBird satellite imagery with approximately 60 cm resolution and piloted aircraft photography with 25-80 cm resolution can be used to measure shrubs above a critical size. Tests conducted with the QuickBird data in the Jornada basin of southern New Mexico have shown that 87% of all shrubs greater than 2 m2 were detected whereas only about 29% of all shrubs less than 2 m2 were detected, even at these high resolutions. Because there is an observational gap between satellite/aircraft measurements and ground observations, we have experimented with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) producing digital photography with approximately 5 cm resolution. We were able to detect all shrubs greater than 2 m2, and we were able to map small subshrubs indicative of rangeland deterioration, as well as remnant grass patches, for the first time. None of these could be identified on the 60 cm resolution data. Additionally, we were able to measure canopy gaps, shrub patterns, percent bare soil, and vegetation cover over mixed rangeland vegetation. This approach is directly applicable to rangeland health monitoring, and it provides a quantitative way to assess shrub invasion over time and to detect the depletion or recovery of grass patches. Further, if the UAV images have sufficient overlap, it may be possible to exploit the stereo viewing capabilities to develop a digital elevation model from the orthophotos, with a potential for extracting canopy height. We envision two

Wind and Wake Sensing with UAV Formation Flight: System Development and Flight Testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larrabee, Trenton Jameson

Wind turbulence including atmospheric turbulence and wake turbulence have been widely investigated; however, only recently it become possible to use Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) as a validation tool for research in this area. Wind can be a major contributing factor of adverse weather for aircraft. More importantly, it is an even greater risk towards UAVs because of their small size and weight. Being able to estimate wind fields and gusts can potentially provide substantial benefits for both unmanned and manned aviation. Possible applications include gust suppression for improving handling qualities, a better warning system for high wind encounters, and enhanced control for small UAVs during flight. On the other hand, the existence of wind can be advantageous since it can lead to fuel savings and longer duration flights through dynamic soaring or thermal soaring. Wakes are an effect of the lift distribution across an aircraft's wing or tail. Wakes can cause substantial disturbances when multiple aircraft are moving through the same airspace. In fact, the perils from an aircraft flying through the wake of another aircraft is a leading cause of the delay between takeoff times at airports. Similar to wind, though, wakes can be useful for energy harvesting and increasing an aircraft's endurance when flying in formation which can be a great advantage to UAVs because they are often limited in flight time due to small payload capacity. Formation flight can most often be seen in manned aircraft but can be adopted for use with unmanned systems. Autonomous flight is needed for flying in the "sweet spot" of the generated wakes for energy harvesting as well as for thermal soaring during long duration flights. For the research presented here formation flight was implemented for the study of wake sensing and gust alleviation. The major contributions of this research are in the areas of a novel technique to estimate wind using an Unscented Kalman filter and experimental wake

Performance Evaluation of 3d Modeling Software for Uav Photogrammetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yanagi, H.; Chikatsu, H.

2016-06-01

UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) photogrammetry, which combines UAV and freely available internet-based 3D modeling software, is widely used as a low-cost and user-friendly photogrammetry technique in the fields such as remote sensing and geosciences. In UAV photogrammetry, only the platform used in conventional aerial photogrammetry is changed. Consequently, 3D modeling software contributes significantly to its expansion. However, the algorithms of the 3D modelling software are black box algorithms. As a result, only a few studies have been able to evaluate their accuracy using 3D coordinate check points. With this motive, Smart3DCapture and Pix4Dmapper were downloaded from the Internet and commercial software PhotoScan was also employed; investigations were performed in this paper using check points and images obtained from UAV.

A fully convolutional network for weed mapping of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery.

PubMed

Huang, Huasheng; Deng, Jizhong; Lan, Yubin; Yang, Aqing; Deng, Xiaoling; Zhang, Lei

2018-01-01

Appropriate Site Specific Weed Management (SSWM) is crucial to ensure the crop yields. Within SSWM of large-scale area, remote sensing is a key technology to provide accurate weed distribution information. Compared with satellite and piloted aircraft remote sensing, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is capable of capturing high spatial resolution imagery, which will provide more detailed information for weed mapping. The objective of this paper is to generate an accurate weed cover map based on UAV imagery. The UAV RGB imagery was collected in 2017 October over the rice field located in South China. The Fully Convolutional Network (FCN) method was proposed for weed mapping of the collected imagery. Transfer learning was used to improve generalization capability, and skip architecture was applied to increase the prediction accuracy. After that, the performance of FCN architecture was compared with Patch_based CNN algorithm and Pixel_based CNN method. Experimental results showed that our FCN method outperformed others, both in terms of accuracy and efficiency. The overall accuracy of the FCN approach was up to 0.935 and the accuracy for weed recognition was 0.883, which means that this algorithm is capable of generating accurate weed cover maps for the evaluated UAV imagery.

Remote sensing program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Philipson, W. R. (Principal Investigator)

1983-01-01

Built on Cornell's thirty years of experience in aerial photographic studies, the NASA-sponsored remote sensing program strengthened instruction and research in remote sensing, established communication links within and beyond the university community, and conducted research projects for or with town, county, state, federal, and private organizations in New York State. The 43 completed applied research projects are listed as well as 13 spinoff grants/contracts. The curriculum offered, consultations provided, and data processing facilities available are described. Publications engendered are listed including the thesis of graduates in the remote sensing program.

Remote sensing of Earth terrain

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kong, J. A.

1993-01-01

Progress report on remote sensing of Earth terrain covering the period from Jan. to June 1993 is presented. Areas of research include: radiative transfer model for active and passive remote sensing of vegetation canopy; polarimetric thermal emission from rough ocean surfaces; polarimetric passive remote sensing of ocean wind vectors; polarimetric thermal emission from periodic water surfaces; layer model with tandom spheriodal scatterers for remote sensing of vegetation canopy; application of theoretical models to active and passive remote sensing of saline ice; radiative transfer theory for polarimetric remote sensing of pine forest; scattering of electromagnetic waves from a dense medium consisting of correlated mie scatterers with size distributions and applications to dry snow; variance of phase fluctuations of waves propagating through a random medium; polarimetric signatures of a canopy of dielectric cylinders based on first and second order vector radiative transfer theory; branching model for vegetation; polarimetric passive remote sensing of periodic surfaces; composite volume and surface scattering model; and radar image classification.

The remote characterization of vegetation using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle photography

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) can fly in place of piloted aircraft to gather remote sensing information on vegetation characteristics. The type of sensors flown depends on the instrument payload capacity available, so that, depending on the specific UAV, it is possible to obtain video, aerial phot...

Advanced Remote Sensing Research

USGS Publications Warehouse

Slonecker, Terrence; Jones, John W.; Price, Susan D.; Hogan, Dianna

2008-01-01

'Remote sensing' is a generic term for monitoring techniques that collect information without being in physical contact with the object of study. Overhead imagery from aircraft and satellite sensors provides the most common form of remotely sensed data and records the interaction of electromagnetic energy (usually visible light) with matter, such as the Earth's surface. Remotely sensed data are fundamental to geographic science. The Eastern Geographic Science Center (EGSC) of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is currently conducting and promoting the research and development of three different aspects of remote sensing science: spectral analysis, automated orthorectification of historical imagery, and long wave infrared (LWIR) polarimetric imagery (PI).

Adapting a Natura 2000 field guideline for a remote sensing-based assessment of heathland conservation status

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmidt, Johannes; Fassnacht, Fabian Ewald; Neff, Christophe; Lausch, Angela; Kleinschmit, Birgit; Förster, Michael; Schmidtlein, Sebastian

2017-08-01

Remote sensing can be a valuable tool for supporting nature conservation monitoring systems. However, for many areas of conservation interest, there is still a considerable gap between field-based operational monitoring guidelines and the current remote sensing-based approaches. This hampers application in practice of the latter. Here, we propose a remote sensing approach for mapping the conservation status of Calluna-dominated Natura 2000 dwarf shrub habitats that is closely related to field mapping schemes. We transferred the evaluation criteria of the field guidelines to three related variables that can be captured by remote sensing: (1) coverage of the key species, (2) stand structural diversity, and (3) co-occurring species. Continuous information on these variables was obtained by regressing ground reference data from field surveys and UAV flights against airborne hyperspectral imagery. Merging the three resulting quality layers in an RGB representation allowed for illustrating the habitat quality in a continuous way. User-defined thresholds can be applied to this stack of quality layers to derive an overall assessment of habitat quality in terms of nature conservation, i.e. the conservation status. In our study, we found good accordance of the remotely sensed data with field-based information for the three variables key species, stand structural diversity and co-occurring vegetation (R2 of 0.79, 0.69, and 0.71, respectively) and it was possible to derive meaningful habitat quality maps. The conservation status could be derived with an accuracy of 65%. In interpreting these results it should be considered that the remote sensing based layers are independent estimates of habitat quality in their own right and not a mere replacement of the criteria used in the field guidelines. The approach is thought to be transferable to similar regions with minor adaptions. Our results refer to Calluna heathland which we consider a comparably easy target for remote sensing

Improving Rangeland Monitoring and Assessment: Integrating Remote Sensing, GIS, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Robert Paul Breckenridge

2007-05-01

Creeping environmental changes are impacting some of the largest remaining intact parcels of sagebrush steppe ecosystems in the western United States, creating major problems for land managers. The Idaho National Laboratory (INL), located in southeastern Idaho, is part of the sagebrush steppe ecosystem, one of the largest ecosystems on the continent. Scientists at the INL and the University of Idaho have integrated existing field and remotely sensed data with geographic information systems technology to analyze how recent fires on the INL have influenced the current distribution of terrestrial vegetation. Three vegetation mapping and classification systems were used to evaluate themore » changes in vegetation caused by fires between 1994 and 2003. Approximately 24% of the sagebrush steppe community on the INL was altered by fire, mostly over a 5-year period. There were notable differences between methods, especially for juniper woodland and grasslands. The Anderson system (Anderson et al. 1996) was superior for representing the landscape because it includes playa/bare ground/disturbed area and sagebrush steppe on lava as vegetation categories. This study found that assessing existing data sets is useful for quantifying fire impacts and should be helpful in future fire and land use planning. The evaluation identified that data from remote sensing technologies is not currently of sufficient quality to assess the percentage of cover. To fill this need, an approach was designed using both helicopter and fixed wing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and image processing software to evaluate six cover types on field plots located on the INL. The helicopter UAV provided the best system compared against field sampling, but is more dangerous and has spatial coverage limitations. It was reasonably accurate for dead shrubs and was very good in assessing percentage of bare ground, litter and grasses; accuracy for litter and shrubs is questionable. The fixed wing system proved

Online Remote Sensing Interface

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lawhead, Joel

2007-01-01

BasinTools Module 1 processes remotely sensed raster data, including multi- and hyper-spectral data products, via a Web site with no downloads and no plug-ins required. The interface provides standardized algorithms designed so that a user with little or no remote-sensing experience can use the site. This Web-based approach reduces the amount of software, hardware, and computing power necessary to perform the specified analyses. Access to imagery and derived products is enterprise-level and controlled. Because the user never takes possession of the imagery, the licensing of the data is greatly simplified. BasinTools takes the "just-in-time" inventory control model from commercial manufacturing and applies it to remotely-sensed data. Products are created and delivered on-the-fly with no human intervention, even for casual users. Well-defined procedures can be combined in different ways to extend verified and validated methods in order to derive new remote-sensing products, which improves efficiency in any well-defined geospatial domain. Remote-sensing products produced in BasinTools are self-documenting, allowing procedures to be independently verified or peer-reviewed. The software can be used enterprise-wide to conduct low-level remote sensing, viewing, sharing, and manipulating of image data without the need for desktop applications.

Remote sensing and image interpretation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lillesand, T. M.; Kiefer, R. W. (Principal Investigator)

1979-01-01

A textbook prepared primarily for use in introductory courses in remote sensing is presented. Topics covered include concepts and foundations of remote sensing; elements of photographic systems; introduction to airphoto interpretation; airphoto interpretation for terrain evaluation; photogrammetry; radiometric characteristics of aerial photographs; aerial thermography; multispectral scanning and spectral pattern recognition; microwave sensing; and remote sensing from space.

Fiber Optic Wing Shape Sensing on NASA's Ikhana UAV

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Richards, Lance; Parker, Allen R.; Ko, William L.; Piazza, Anthony

2008-01-01

Fiber Optic Wing Shape Sensing on Ikhana involves five major areas 1) Algorithm development: Local-strain-to-displacement algorithms have been developed for complex wing shapes for real-time implementation (NASA TP-2007-214612, patent application submitted) 2) FBG system development: Dryden advancements to fiber optic sensing technology have increased data sampling rates to levels suitable for monitoring structures in flight (patent application submitted) 3) Instrumentation: 2880 FBG strain sensors have been successfully installed on the Ikhana wings 4) Ground Testing: Fiber optic wing shape sensing methods for high aspect ratio UAVs have been validated through extensive ground testing in Dryden s Flight Loads Laboratory 5) Flight Testing: Real time fiber Bragg strain measurements successfully acquired and validated in flight (4/28/2008) Real-time fiber optic wing shape sensing successfully demonstrated in flight

REMOTE SENSING IN OCEANOGRAPHY.

DTIC Science & Technology

remote sensing from satellites. Sensing of oceanographic variables from aircraft began with the photographing of waves and ice. Since then remote measurement of sea surface temperatures and wave heights have become routine. Sensors tested for oceanographic applications include multi-band color cameras, radar scatterometers, infrared spectrometers and scanners, passive microwave radiometers, and radar imagers. Remote sensing has found its greatest application in providing rapid coverage of large oceanographic areas for synoptic and analysis and

Remote-Sensing Practice and Potential

DTIC Science & Technology

1974-05-01

Six essential processes that must be accomplished if use of a remote - sensing system is to result in useful information are defined as problem...to be useful in remote - sensing projects are described. An overview of the current state-of-the-art of remote sensing is presented.

THE EPA REMOTE SENSING ARCHIVE

EPA Science Inventory

What would you do if you were faced with organizing 30 years of remote sensing projects that had been haphazardly stored at two separate locations for years then combined? The EPA Remote Sensing Archive, currently located in Las Vegas, Nevada. contains the remote sensing data and...

Remote sensing of wetlands

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roller, N. E. G.

1977-01-01

The concept of using remote sensing to inventory wetlands and the related topics of proper inventory design and data collection are discussed. The material presented shows that aerial photography is the form of remote sensing from which the greatest amount of wetlands information can be derived. For extensive, general-purpose wetlands inventories, however, the use of LANDSAT data may be more cost-effective. Airborne multispectral scanners and radar are, in the main, too expensive to use - unless the information that these sensors alone can gather remotely is absolutely required. Multistage sampling employing space and high altitude remote sensing data in the initial stages appears to be an efficient survey strategy for gathering non-point specific wetlands inventory data over large areas. The operational role of remote sensing insupplying inventory data for application to several typical wetlands management problems is illustrated by summary descriptions of past ERIM projects.

Technology study of quantum remote sensing imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bi, Siwen; Lin, Xuling; Yang, Song; Wu, Zhiqiang

2016-02-01

According to remote sensing science and technology development and application requirements, quantum remote sensing is proposed. First on the background of quantum remote sensing, quantum remote sensing theory, information mechanism, imaging experiments and prototype principle prototype research situation, related research at home and abroad are briefly introduced. Then we expounds compress operator of the quantum remote sensing radiation field and the basic principles of single-mode compression operator, quantum quantum light field of remote sensing image compression experiment preparation and optical imaging, the quantum remote sensing imaging principle prototype, Quantum remote sensing spaceborne active imaging technology is brought forward, mainly including quantum remote sensing spaceborne active imaging system composition and working principle, preparation and injection compression light active imaging device and quantum noise amplification device. Finally, the summary of quantum remote sensing research in the past 15 years work and future development are introduced.

Moments of Inertia - Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Dryden Remotely Operated Integrated Drone (DROID)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haro, Helida C.

2010-01-01

The objective of this research effort is to determine the most appropriate, cost efficient, and effective method to utilize for finding moments of inertia for the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Dryden Remotely Operated Integrated Drone (DROID). A moment is a measure of the body's tendency to turn about its center of gravity (CG) and inertia is the resistance of a body to changes in its momentum. Therefore, the moment of inertia (MOI) is a body's resistance to change in rotation about its CG. The inertial characteristics of an UAV have direct consequences on aerodynamics, propulsion, structures, and control. Therefore, it is imperative to determine the precise inertial characteristics of the DROID.

Moments of Inertia: Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Dryden Remotely Operated Integrated Drone (DROID)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haro, Helida C.

2010-01-01

The objective of this research effort is to determine the most appropriate, cost efficient, and effective method to utilize for finding moments of inertia for the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Dryden Remotely Operated Integrated Drone (DROID). A moment is a measure of the body's tendency to turn about its center of gravity (CG) and inertia is the resistance of a body to changes in its momentum. Therefore, the moment of inertia (MOI) is a body's resistance to change in rotation about its CG. The inertial characteristics of an UAV have direct consequences on aerodynamics, propulsion, structures, and control. Therefore, it is imperative to determine the precise inertial characteristics of the DROID.

Applied Remote Sensing Program (ARSP)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, J. D.; Foster, K. E.; Mouat, D. A.; Miller, D. A.; Conn, J. S.

1976-01-01

The activities and accomplishments of the Applied Remote Sensing Program during FY 1975-1976 are reported. The principal objective of the Applied Remote Sensing Program continues to be designed projects having specific decision-making impacts as a principal goal. These projects are carried out in cooperation and collaboration with local, state and federal agencies whose responsibilities lie with planning, zoning and environmental monitoring and/or assessment in the application of remote sensing techniques. The end result of the projects is the use by the involved agencies of remote sensing techniques in problem solving.

Tropospheric Passive Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keafer, L. S., Jr. (Editor)

1982-01-01

The long term role of airborne/spaceborne passive remote sensing systems for tropospheric air quality research and the identification of technology advances required to improve the performance of passive remote sensing systems were discussed.

Satellite Calibration and Verification of Remotely Sensed Cloud and Radiation Properties Using ARM UAV Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Minnis, Patrick; Charlock, Thomas P.

1998-01-01

The work proposed under this agreement was designed to validate and improve remote sensing of cloud and radiation properties in the atmosphere for climate studies with special emphasis on the use of satellites for monitoring these parameters to further the goals of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program.

SUPERFUND REMOTE SENSING SUPPORT

EPA Science Inventory

This task provides remote sensing technical support to the Superfund program. Support includes the collection, processing, and analysis of remote sensing data to characterize hazardous waste disposal sites and their history. Image analysis reports, aerial photographs, and assoc...

Applications of Remote Sensing to Emergency Management.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-02-15

Contents: Foundations of Remote Sensing : Data Acquisition and Interpretation; Availability of Remote Sensing Technology for Disaster Response...Imaging Systems, Current and Near Future Satellite and Aircraft Remote Sensing Systems; Utilization of Remote Sensing in Disaster Response: Categories of...Disasters, Phases of Monitoring Activities; Recommendations for Utilization of Remote Sensing Technology in Disaster Response; Selected Reading List.

Acoustic Remote Sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dowling, David R.; Sabra, Karim G.

2015-01-01

Acoustic waves carry information about their source and collect information about their environment as they propagate. This article reviews how these information-carrying and -collecting features of acoustic waves that travel through fluids can be exploited for remote sensing. In nearly all cases, modern acoustic remote sensing involves array-recorded sounds and array signal processing to recover multidimensional results. The application realm for acoustic remote sensing spans an impressive range of signal frequencies (10-2 to 107 Hz) and distances (10-2 to 107 m) and involves biomedical ultrasound imaging, nondestructive evaluation, oil and gas exploration, military systems, and Nuclear Test Ban Treaty monitoring. In the past two decades, approaches have been developed to robustly localize remote sources; remove noise and multipath distortion from recorded signals; and determine the acoustic characteristics of the environment through which the sound waves have traveled, even when the recorded sounds originate from uncooperative sources or are merely ambient noise.

Increasing the UAV data value by an OBIA methodology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

García-Pedrero, Angel; Lillo-Saavedra, Mario; Rodriguez-Esparragon, Dionisio; Rodriguez-Gonzalez, Alejandro; Gonzalo-Martin, Consuelo

2017-10-01

Recently, there has been a noteworthy increment of using images registered by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in different remote sensing applications. Sensors boarded on UAVs has lower operational costs and complexity than other remote sensing platforms, quicker turnaround times as well as higher spatial resolution. Concerning this last aspect, particular attention has to be paid on the limitations of classical algorithms based on pixels when they are applied to high resolution images. The objective of this study is to investigate the capability of an OBIA methodology developed for the automatic generation of a digital terrain model of an agricultural area from Digital Elevation Model (DEM) and multispectral images registered by a Parrot Sequoia multispectral sensor board on a eBee SQ agricultural drone. The proposed methodology uses a superpixel approach for obtaining context and elevation information used for merging superpixels and at the same time eliminating objects such as trees in order to generate a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) of the analyzed area. Obtained results show the potential of the approach, in terms of accuracy, when it is compared with a DTM generated by manually eliminating objects.

Remote Sensing Systems to Detect and Analyze Oil Spills on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf - A State of the Art Assessment

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-08-18

multi- sensor remote sensing approach to describe the distribution of oil from the DWH spill. They used airborne and satellite , multi- and hyperspectral...Experimental Sensors e.g., Acoustic and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) (Fingas and Brown, 2012; Puestow et al., 2013). These are further...ship, aerial - aircraft, aerostat or UAV, or satellite ), among other classification criteria. A comprehensive review of sensor categories employed

Remote Sensing Soil Moisture Analysis by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Digital Imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeh, C. Y.; Lin, H. R.; Chen, Y. L.; Huang, S. Y.; Wen, J. C.

2017-12-01

In recent years, remote sensing analysis has been able to apply to the research of climate change, environment monitoring, geology, hydro-meteorological, and so on. However, the traditional methods for analyzing wide ranges of surface soil moisture of spatial distribution surveys may require plenty resources besides the high cost. In the past, remote sensing analysis performed soil moisture estimates through shortwave, thermal infrared ray, or infrared satellite, which requires lots of resources, labor, and money. Therefore, the digital image color was used to establish the multiple linear regression model. Finally, we can find out the relationship between surface soil color and soil moisture. In this study, we use the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) to take an aerial photo of the fallow farmland. Simultaneously, we take the surface soil sample from 0-5 cm of the surface. The soil will be baking by 110° C and 24 hr. And the software ImageJ 1.48 is applied for the analysis of the digital images and the hue analysis into Red, Green, and Blue (R, G, B) hue values. The correlation analysis is the result from the data obtained from the image hue and the surface soil moisture at each sampling point. After image and soil moisture analysis, we use the R, G, B and soil moisture to establish the multiple regression to estimate the spatial distributions of surface soil moisture. In the result, we compare the real soil moisture and the estimated soil moisture. The coefficient of determination (R2) can achieve 0.5-0.7. The uncertainties in the field test, such as the sun illumination, the sun exposure angle, even the shadow, will affect the result; therefore, R2 can achieve 0.5-0.7 reflects good effect for the in-suit test by using the digital image to estimate the soil moisture. Based on the outcomes of the research, using digital images from UAV to estimate the surface soil moisture is acceptable. However, further investigations need to be collected more than ten days (four

Remote sensing applications program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1984-01-01

The activities of the Mississippi Remote Sensing Center are described in addition to technology transfer and information dissemination, remote sensing topics such as timber identification, water quality, flood prevention, land use, erosion control, animal habitats, and environmental impact studies are also discussed.

Commerical Remote Sensing Data Contract

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

2005-01-01

The U. S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Commercial Remote Sensing Data Contracts (CRSDCs) provide government agencies with access to a broad range of commercially available remotely sensed airborne and satellite data. These contracts were established to support The National Map partners, other Federal Civilian agency programs, and Department of Defense programs that require data for the United States and its territories. Experience shows that centralized procurement of remotely sensed data leads to considerable cost savings to the Federal government through volume discounts, reduction of redundant contract administrative costs, and avoidance of duplicate purchases. These contracts directly support the President's Commercial Remote Sensing Space Policy, signed in 2003, by providing a centralized mechanism for civil agencies to acquire commercial remote sensing products to support their mission needs in an efficient and coordinated way. CRSDC administration is provided by the USGS Mid-Continent Mapping Center in Rolla, Missouri.

Tunnel-Site Selection by Remote Sensing Techniques

DTIC Science & Technology

A study of the role of remote sensing for geologic reconnaissance for tunnel-site selection was commenced. For this study, remote sensing was defined...conventional remote sensing . Future research directions are suggested, and the extension of remote sensing to include airborne passive microwave

Land Remote Sensing Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Byrnes, Ray

2007-01-01

A general overview of the USGS land remote sensing program is presented. The contents include: 1) Brief overview of USGS land remote sensing program; 2) Highlights of JACIE work at USGS; 3) Update on NASA/USGS Landsat Data Continuity Mission; and 4) Notes on alternative data sources.

Remote sensing of Earth terrain

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kong, J. A.

1992-01-01

Research findings are summarized for projects dealing with the following: application of theoretical models to active and passive remote sensing of saline ice; radiative transfer theory for polarimetric remote sensing of pine forest; scattering of electromagnetic waves from a dense medium consisting of correlated Mie scatterers with size distribution and applications to dry snow; variance of phase fluctuations of waves propagating through a random medium; theoretical modeling for passive microwave remote sensing of earth terrain; polarimetric signatures of a canopy of dielectric cylinders based on first and second order vector radiative transfer theory; branching model for vegetation; polarimetric passive remote sensing of periodic surfaces; composite volume and surface scattering model; and radar image classification.

Bundle block adjustment of large-scale remote sensing data with Block-based Sparse Matrix Compression combined with Preconditioned Conjugate Gradient

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Maoteng; Zhang, Yongjun; Zhou, Shunping; Zhu, Junfeng; Xiong, Xiaodong

2016-07-01

In recent years, new platforms and sensors in photogrammetry, remote sensing and computer vision areas have become available, such as Unmanned Aircraft Vehicles (UAV), oblique camera systems, common digital cameras and even mobile phone cameras. Images collected by all these kinds of sensors could be used as remote sensing data sources. These sensors can obtain large-scale remote sensing data which consist of a great number of images. Bundle block adjustment of large-scale data with conventional algorithm is very time and space (memory) consuming due to the super large normal matrix arising from large-scale data. In this paper, an efficient Block-based Sparse Matrix Compression (BSMC) method combined with the Preconditioned Conjugate Gradient (PCG) algorithm is chosen to develop a stable and efficient bundle block adjustment system in order to deal with the large-scale remote sensing data. The main contribution of this work is the BSMC-based PCG algorithm which is more efficient in time and memory than the traditional algorithm without compromising the accuracy. Totally 8 datasets of real data are used to test our proposed method. Preliminary results have shown that the BSMC method can efficiently decrease the time and memory requirement of large-scale data.

Remote Sensing of Ecology, Biodiversity and Conservation: A Review from the Perspective of Remote Sensing Specialists

PubMed Central

Wang, Kai; Franklin, Steven E.; Guo, Xulin; Cattet, Marc

2010-01-01

Remote sensing, the science of obtaining information via noncontact recording, has swept the fields of ecology, biodiversity and conservation (EBC). Several quality review papers have contributed to this field. However, these papers often discuss the issues from the standpoint of an ecologist or a biodiversity specialist. This review focuses on the spaceborne remote sensing of EBC from the perspective of remote sensing specialists, i.e., it is organized in the context of state-of-the-art remote sensing technology, including instruments and techniques. Herein, the instruments to be discussed consist of high spatial resolution, hyperspectral, thermal infrared, small-satellite constellation, and LIDAR sensors; and the techniques refer to image classification, vegetation index (VI), inversion algorithm, data fusion, and the integration of remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS). PMID:22163432

Remote sensing of ecology, biodiversity and conservation: a review from the perspective of remote sensing specialists.

PubMed

Wang, Kai; Franklin, Steven E; Guo, Xulin; Cattet, Marc

2010-01-01

Remote sensing, the science of obtaining information via noncontact recording, has swept the fields of ecology, biodiversity and conservation (EBC). Several quality review papers have contributed to this field. However, these papers often discuss the issues from the standpoint of an ecologist or a biodiversity specialist. This review focuses on the spaceborne remote sensing of EBC from the perspective of remote sensing specialists, i.e., it is organized in the context of state-of-the-art remote sensing technology, including instruments and techniques. Herein, the instruments to be discussed consist of high spatial resolution, hyperspectral, thermal infrared, small-satellite constellation, and LIDAR sensors; and the techniques refer to image classification, vegetation index (VI), inversion algorithm, data fusion, and the integration of remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS).

AVALON: definition and modeling of a vertical takeoff and landing UAV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silva, N. B. F.; Marconato, E. A.; Branco, K. R. L. J. C.

2015-09-01

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have been used in numerous applications, like remote sensing, precision agriculture and atmospheric data monitoring. Vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) is a modality of these aircrafts, which are capable of taking off and landing vertically, like a helicopter. This paper presents the definition and modeling of a fixed- wing VTOL, named AVALON (Autonomous VerticAL takeOff and laNding), which has the advantages of traditional aircrafts with improved performance and can take off and land in small areas. The principles of small UAVs development were followed to achieve a better design and to increase the range of applications for this VTOL. Therefore, we present the design model of AVALON validated in a flight simulator and the results show its validity as a physical option for an UAV platform.

Remote Sensing and the Environment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Osmers, Karl

1991-01-01

Suggests using remote sensing technology to help students make sense of the natural world. Explains that satellite information allows observation of environmental changes over time. Identifies possible student projects based on remotely sensed data. Recommends obtaining the assistance of experts and seeking funding through effective project…

Remote Sensing: A Film Review.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carter, David J.

1986-01-01

Reviews the content of 19 films on remote sensing published between 1973 and 1980. Concludes that they are overly simplistic, notably outdated, and generally too optimistic about the potential of remote sensing from space for resource exploration and environmental problem-solving. Provides names and addresses of more current remote sensing…

Solid images generated from UAVs to analyze areas affected by rock falls

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giordan, Daniele; Manconi, Andrea; Allasia, Paolo; Baldo, Marco

2015-04-01

The study of rock fall affected areas is usually based on the recognition of principal joints families and the localization of potential instable sectors. This requires the acquisition of field data, although as the areas are barely accessible and field inspections are often very dangerous. For this reason, remote sensing systems can be considered as suitable alternative. Recently, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have been proposed as platform to acquire the necessary information. Indeed, mini UAVs (in particular in the multi-rotors configuration) provide versatility for the acquisition from different points of view a large number of high resolution optical images, which can be used to generate high resolution digital models relevant to the study area. By considering the recent development of powerful user-friendly software and algorithms to process images acquired from UAVs, there is now a need to establish robust methodologies and best-practice guidelines for correct use of 3D models generated in the context of rock fall scenarios. In this work, we show how multi-rotor UAVs can be used to survey areas by rock fall during real emergency contexts. We present two examples of application located in northwestern Italy: the San Germano rock fall (Piemonte region) and the Moneglia rock fall (Liguria region). We acquired data from both terrestrial LiDAR and UAV, in order to compare digital elevation models generated with different remote sensing approaches. We evaluate the volume of the rock falls, identify the areas potentially unstable, and recognize the main joints families. The use on is not so developed but probably this approach can be considered the better solution for a structural investigation of large rock walls. We propose a methodology that jointly considers the Structure from Motion (SfM) approach for the generation of 3D solid images, and a geotechnical analysis for the identification of joint families and potential failure planes.

A Remote-Sensing Mission

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hotchkiss, Rose; Dickerson, Daniel

2008-01-01

Sponsored by NASA and the JASON Education Foundation, the remote Sensing Earth Science Teacher Education Program (RSESTeP) trains teachers to use state-of-the art remote-sensing technology with the idea that participants bring back what they learn and incorporate it into Earth science lessons using technology. The author's participation in the…

From planets to crops and back: Remote sensing makes sense

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mustard, John F.

2017-04-01

Remotely sensed data and the instruments that acquire them are core parts of Earth and planetary observation systems. They are used to quantify the Earth's interconnected systems, and remote sensing is the only way to get a daily, or more frequent, snapshot of the status of the Earth. It really is the Earth's stethoscope. In a similar manner remote sensing is the rock hammer of the planetary scientist and the only way comprehensive data sets can be acquired. To risk offending many remotely sensed data acquired across the electromagnetic spectrum, it is the tricorder to explore known and unknown planets. Arriving where we are today in the use of remotely sensed data in the solar system has been a continually evolving synergy between Earth observation, planetary exploration, and fundamental laboratory work.

Remote Sensing and the Earth.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brosius, Craig A.; And Others

This document is designed to help senior high school students study remote sensing technology and techniques in relation to the environmental sciences. It discusses the acquisition, analysis, and use of ecological remote data. Material is divided into three sections and an appendix. Section One is an overview of the basics of remote sensing.…

Radar Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosen, Paul A.

2012-01-01

This lecture was just a taste of radar remote sensing techniques and applications. Other important areas include Stereo radar grammetry. PolInSAR for volumetric structure mapping. Agricultural monitoring, soil moisture, ice-mapping, etc. The broad range of sensor types, frequencies of observation and availability of sensors have enabled radar sensors to make significant contributions in a wide area of earth and planetary remote sensing sciences. The range of applications, both qualitative and quantitative, continue to expand with each new generation of sensors.

An UAV scheduling and planning method for post-disaster survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, G. Q.; Zhou, X. G.; Yin, J.; Xiao, Q. Y.

2014-11-01

Annually, the extreme climate and special geological environments lead to frequent natural disasters, e.g., earthquakes, floods, etc. The disasters often bring serious casualties and enormous economic losses. Post-disaster surveying is very important for disaster relief and assessment. As the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) remote sensing with the advantage of high efficiency, high precision, high flexibility, and low cost, it is widely used in emergency surveying in recent years. As the UAVs used in emergency surveying cannot stop and wait for the happening of the disaster, when the disaster happens the UAVs usually are working at everywhere. In order to improve the emergency surveying efficiency, it is needed to track the UAVs and assign the emergency surveying task for each selected UAV. Therefore, a UAV tracking and scheduling method for post-disaster survey is presented in this paper. In this method, Global Positioning System (GPS), and GSM network are used to track the UAVs; an emergency tracking UAV information database is built in advance by registration, the database at least includes the following information, e.g., the ID of the UAVs, the communication number of the UAVs; when catastrophe happens, the real time location of all UAVs in the database will be gotten using emergency tracking method at first, then the traffic cost time for all UAVs to the disaster region will be calculated based on the UAVs' the real time location and the road network using the nearest services analysis algorithm; the disaster region is subdivided to several emergency surveying regions based on DEM, area, and the population distribution map; the emergency surveying regions are assigned to the appropriated UAV according to shortest cost time rule. The UAVs tracking and scheduling prototype is implemented using SQLServer2008, ArcEnginge 10.1 SDK, Visual Studio 2010 C#, Android, SMS Modem, and Google Maps API.

APPLIED REMOTE SENSING

EPA Science Inventory

Remote Sensing is a scientific discipline of non-contact monitoring. It includes a range of technologies that span from aerial photography to advanced spectral imaging and analytical methods. This Session is designed to demonstrate contemporary practical applications of remote se...

Near-earth orbital guidance and remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Powers, W. F.

1972-01-01

The curriculum of a short course in remote sensing and parameter optimization is presented. The subjects discussed are: (1) basics of remote sensing and the user community, (2) multivariant spectral analysis, (3) advanced mathematics and physics of remote sensing, (4) the atmospheric environment, (5) imaging sensing, and (6)nonimaging sensing. Mathematical models of optimization techniques are developed.

Use of remote sensing in agriculture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pettry, D. E.; Powell, N. L.; Newhouse, M. E.

1974-01-01

Remote sensing studies in Virginia and Chesapeake Bay areas to investigate soil and plant conditions via remote sensing technology are reported ant the results given. Remote sensing techniques and interactions are also discussed. Specific studies on the effects of soil moisture and organic matter on energy reflection of extensively occurring Sassafras soils are discussed. Greenhouse and field studies investigating the effects of chlorophyll content of Irish potatoes on infrared reflection are presented. Selected ground truth and environmental monitoring data are shown in summary form. Practical demonstrations of remote sensing technology in agriculture are depicted and future use areas are delineated.

Aerosol Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lenoble, Jacqueline (Editor); Remer, Lorraine (Editor); Tanre, Didier (Editor)

2012-01-01

This book gives a much needed explanation of the basic physical principles of radia5tive transfer and remote sensing, and presents all the instruments and retrieval algorithms in a homogenous manner. For the first time, an easy path from theory to practical algorithms is available in one easily accessible volume, making the connection between theoretical radiative transfer and individual practical solutions to retrieve aerosol information from remote sensing. In addition, the specifics and intercomparison of all current and historical methods are explained and clarified.

Use of a UAV-mounted video camera to assess feeding behavior of Raramuri Criollo cows

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Interest in use of unmanned aerial vehicles in science has increased in recent years. It is predicted that they will be a preferred remote sensing platform for applications that inform sustainable rangeland management in the future. The objective of this study was to determine whether UAV video moni...

Remote Sensing and the Earth

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brosius, C. A.; Gervin, J. C.; Ragusa, J. M.

1977-01-01

A text book on remote sensing, as part of the earth resources Skylab programs, is presented. The fundamentals of remote sensing and its application to agriculture, land use, geology, water and marine resources, and environmental monitoring are summarized.

Sensing our Environment: Remote sensing in a physics classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isaacson, Sivan; Schüttler, Tobias; Cohen-Zada, Aviv L.; Blumberg, Dan G.; Girwidz, Raimund; Maman, Shimrit

2017-04-01

Remote sensing is defined as data acquisition of an object, deprived physical contact. Fundamentally, most remote sensing applications are referred to as the use of satellite- or aircraft-based sensor technologies to detect and classify objects mainly on Earth or other planets. In the last years there have been efforts to bring the important subject of remote sensing into schools, however, most of these attempts focused on geography disciplines - restricting to the applications of remote sensing and to a less extent the technique itself and the physics behind it. Optical remote sensing is based on physical principles and technical devices, which are very meaningful from a theoretical point of view as well as for "hands-on" teaching. Some main subjects are radiation, atom and molecular physics, spectroscopy, as well as optics and the semiconductor technology used in modern digital cameras. Thus two objectives were outlined for this project: 1) to investigate the possibilities of using remote sensing techniques in physics teaching, and 2) to identify its impact on pupil's interest in the field of natural sciences. This joint project of the DLR_School_Lab, Oberpfaffenhofen of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the Earth and Planetary Image Facility (EPIF) at BGU, was conducted in 2016. Thirty teenagers (ages 16-18) participated in the project and were exposed to the cutting edge methods of earth observation. The pupils on both sides participated in the project voluntarily, knowing that at least some of the project's work had to be done in their leisure time. The pupil's project started with a day at EPIF and DLR respectively, where the project task was explained to the participants and an introduction to remote sensing of vegetation was given. This was realized in lectures and in experimental workshops. During the following two months both groups took several measurements with modern optical remote sensing systems in their home region with a special focus on flora

Earth view: A business guide to orbital remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bishop, Peter C.

1990-01-01

The following subject areas are covered: Earth view - a guide to orbital remote sensing; current orbital remote sensing systems (LANDSAT, SPOT image, MOS-1, Soviet remote sensing systems); remote sensing satellite; and remote sensing organizations.

Polarimetric passive remote sensing of periodic surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Veysoglu, Murat E.; Yueh, H. A.; Shin, R. T.; Kong, J. A.

1991-01-01

The concept of polarimetry in active remote sensing is extended to passive remote sensing. The potential use of the third and fourth Stokes parameters U and V, which play an important role in polarimetric active remote sensing, is demonstrated for passive remote sensing. It is shown that, by the use of the reciprocity principle, the polarimetric parameters of passive remote sensing can be obtained through the solution of the associated direct scattering problem. These ideas are applied to study polarimetric passive remote sensing of periodic surfaces. The solution of the direct scattering problem is obtained by an integral equation formulation which involves evaluation of periodic Green's functions and normal derivative of those on the surface. Rapid evaluation of the slowly convergent series associated with these functions is observed to be critical for the feasibility of the method. New formulas, which are rapidly convergent, are derived for the calculation of these series. The study has shown that the brightness temperature of the Stokes parameter U can be significant in passive remote sensing. Values as high as 50 K are observed for certain configurations.

THE REMOTE SENSING DATA GATEWAY

EPA Science Inventory

The EPA Remote Sensing Data Gateway (RSDG) is a pilot project in the National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) to develop a comprehensive data search, acquisition, delivery and archive mechanism for internal, national and international sources of remote sensing data for the co...

Energy and remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Summers, R. A.; Smith, W. L.; Short, N. M.

1977-01-01

Effective implementation of the President's National Energy Plan and the Nuclear Power Policy Statement require application of the best remote sensing tools available. The potential contributions of remote sensing, particularly LANDSAT data, have yet to be clearly identified and exploited. These contributions investigated fall into the following categories: (1) exploration; (2) exploitation; (3) power plant siting; (4) environmental assessment and monitoring; and (5) transportation infrastructure.

Mississippi Sound Remote Sensing Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Atwell, B. H.

1973-01-01

The Mississippi Sound Remote Sensing Study was initiated as part of the research program of the NASA Earth Resources Laboratory. The objective of this study is development of remote sensing techniques to study near-shore marine waters. Included within this general objective are the following: (1) evaluate existing techniques and instruments used for remote measurement of parameters of interest within these waters; (2) develop methods for interpretation of state-of-the-art remote sensing data which are most meaningful to an understanding of processes taking place within near-shore waters; (3) define hardware development requirements and/or system specifications; (4) develop a system combining data from remote and surface measurements which will most efficiently assess conditions in near-shore waters; (5) conduct projects in coordination with appropriate operating agencies to demonstrate applicability of this research to environmental and economic problems.

Estimation of canopy attributes in beech forests using true colour digital images from a small fixed-wing UAV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chianucci, Francesco; Disperati, Leonardo; Guzzi, Donatella; Bianchini, Daniele; Nardino, Vanni; Lastri, Cinzia; Rindinella, Andrea; Corona, Piermaria

2016-05-01

Accurate estimates of forest canopy are essential for the characterization of forest ecosystems. Remotely-sensed techniques provide a unique way to obtain estimates over spatially extensive areas, but their application is limited by the spectral and temporal resolution available from these systems, which is often not suited to meet regional or local objectives. The use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) as remote sensing platforms has recently gained increasing attention, but their applications in forestry are still at an experimental stage. In this study we described a methodology to obtain rapid and reliable estimates of forest canopy from a small UAV equipped with a commercial RGB camera. The red, green and blue digital numbers were converted to the green leaf algorithm (GLA) and to the CIE L*a*b* colour space to obtain estimates of canopy cover, foliage clumping and leaf area index (L) from aerial images. Canopy attributes were compared with in situ estimates obtained from two digital canopy photographic techniques (cover and fisheye photography). The method was tested in beech forests. UAV images accurately quantified canopy cover even in very dense stand conditions, despite a tendency to not detecting small within-crown gaps in aerial images, leading to a measurement of a quantity much closer to crown cover estimated from in situ cover photography. Estimates of L from UAV images significantly agreed with that obtained from fisheye images, but the accuracy of UAV estimates is influenced by the appropriate assumption of leaf angle distribution. We concluded that true colour UAV images can be effectively used to obtain rapid, cheap and meaningful estimates of forest canopy attributes at medium-large scales. UAV can combine the advantage of high resolution imagery with quick turnaround series, being therefore suitable for routine forest stand monitoring and real-time applications.

Remote Sensing and Reflectance Profiling in Entomology.

PubMed

Nansen, Christian; Elliott, Norman

2016-01-01

Remote sensing describes the characterization of the status of objects and/or the classification of their identity based on a combination of spectral features extracted from reflectance or transmission profiles of radiometric energy. Remote sensing can be benchtop based, and therefore acquired at a high spatial resolution, or airborne at lower spatial resolution to cover large areas. Despite important challenges, airborne remote sensing technologies will undoubtedly be of major importance in optimized management of agricultural systems in the twenty-first century. Benchtop remote sensing applications are becoming important in insect systematics and in phenomics studies of insect behavior and physiology. This review highlights how remote sensing influences entomological research by enabling scientists to nondestructively monitor how individual insects respond to treatments and ambient conditions. Furthermore, novel remote sensing technologies are creating intriguing interdisciplinary bridges between entomology and disciplines such as informatics and electrical engineering.

Literature relevant to remote sensing of water quality

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Middleton, E. M.; Marcell, R. F.

1983-01-01

References relevant to remote sensing of water quality were compiled, organized, and cross-referenced. The following general categories were included: (1) optical properties and measurement of water characteristics; (2) interpretation of water characteristics by remote sensing, including color, transparency, suspended or dissolved inorganic matter, biological materials, and temperature; (3) application of remote sensing for water quality monitoring; (4) application of remote sensing according to water body type; and (5) manipulation, processing and interpretation of remote sensing digital water data.

Photogrammetry - Remote Sensing and Geoinformation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lazaridou, M. A.; Patmio, E. N.

2012-07-01

Earth and its environment are studied by different scientific disciplines as geosciences, science of engineering, social sciences, geography, etc. The study of the above, beyond pure scientific interest, is useful for the practical needs of man. Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (defined by Statute II of ISPRS) is the art, science, and technology of obtaining reliable information from non-contact imaging and other sensor systems about the Earth and its environment, and other physical objects and of processes through recording, measuring, analyzing and representation. Therefore, according to this definition, photogrammetry and remote sensing can support studies of the above disciplines for acquisition of geoinformation. This paper concerns basic concepts of geosciences (geomorphology, geology, hydrology etc), and the fundamentals of photogrammetry-remote sensing, in order to aid the understanding of the relationship between photogrammetry-remote sensing and geoinformation and also structure curriculum in a brief, concise and coherent way. This curriculum can represent an appropriate research and educational outline and help to disseminate knowledge in various directions and levels. It resulted from our research and educational experience in graduate and post-graduate level (post-graduate studies relative to the protection of environment and protection of monuments and historical centers) in the Lab. of Photogrammetry - Remote Sensing in Civil Engineering Faculty of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.

Archaeology, historical site risk assessment and monitoring by UAV: approaches and case studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pecci, Antonio; Masini, Nicola

2016-04-01

Non-invasive methods for archaeological research, like geophysical prospecting, aerial and satellite remote sensing, integrated with field survey activity, can make a large quantity of data essential for both operational uses and scientific purposes: from the detection of buried remains to risk assessment and monitoring (Lasaponara & Masini 2012; 2013; Lasaponara et al. 2016). Among the latest non-invasive methods there are the unmanned air vehicle (UAV) platforms, a real innovation, which proved to be capable for a variety of fields of applications, from the topographic survey to the monitoring of infrastructures. In the field of cultural heritage, for purposes ranging from the documentation to the detection of archaeological features, the use of UAVs is extremely functional, efficient and low-cost. Moreover, UAV flight requires much less time than that required by an Aircraft. A traditional aircraft must take off from an airport, sometimes far from the work area, while a drone, particularly rotary wing, can be transported in the area of interest and take off directly from there in a few minutes. The reason of the success of UAV are also the innovative vision, the very high-resolution of the obtainable products (orthophoto, digital elevations models) and the availability of easy tools of image processing based on Structure from Motion (SfM). (Neitzel & Klonowski 2011; Nex & Remondino 2013). SfM is a range imaging technique which allows to estimate three-dimensional objects from two-dimensional image sequences which may be coupled with local motion signals. Respect to conventional photogrammetry which requires a single stereo-pair, SfM needs multiple, overlapping photographs as input to feature extraction and 3-D reconstruction algorithms. In SfM the geometry of the scene, camera positions and orientation are solved simultaneously using a highly redundant, iterative bundle adjustment procedure, based on a database of features automatically extracted from a set of

Indicators of international remote sensing activities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spann, G. W.

1977-01-01

The extent of worldwide remote sensing activities, including the use of satellite and high/medium altitude aircraft data was studied. Data were obtained from numerous individuals and organizations with international remote sensing responsibilities. Indicators were selected to evaluate the nature and scope of remote sensing activities in each country. These indicators ranged from attendance at remote sensing workshops and training courses to the establishment of earth resources satellite ground stations and plans for the launch of earth resources satellites. Results indicate that this technology constitutes a rapidly increasing component of environmental, land use, and natural resources investigations in many countries, and most of these countries rely on the LANDSAT satellites for a major portion of their data.

Remote sensing for cotton farming

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Application of remote sensing technologies in agriculture began with the use of aerial photography to identify cotton root rot in the late 1920s. From then on, agricultural remote sensing has developed gradually until the introduction of precision farming technologies in the late 1980s and biotechno...

Multiscale and Multitemporal Urban Remote Sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mesev, V.

2012-07-01

The remote sensing of urban areas has received much attention from scientists conducting studies on measuring sprawl, congestion, pollution, poverty, and environmental encroachment. Yet much of the research is case and data-specific where results are greatly influenced by prevailing local conditions. There seems to be a lack of epistemological links between remote sensing and conventional theoretical urban geography; in other words, an oversight for the appreciation of how urban theory fuels urban change and how urban change is measured by remotely sensed data. This paper explores basic urban theories such as centrality, mobility, materiality, nature, public space, consumption, segregation and exclusion, and how they can be measured by remote sensing sources. In particular, the link between structure (tangible objects) and function (intangible or immaterial behavior) is addressed as the theory that supports the wellknow contrast between land cover and land use classification from remotely sensed data. The paper then couches these urban theories and contributions from urban remote sensing within two analytical fields. The first is the search for an "appropriate" spatial scale of analysis, which is conveniently divided between micro and macro urban remote sensing for measuring urban structure, understanding urban processes, and perhaps contributions to urban theory at a variety of scales of analysis. The second is on the existence of a temporal lag between materiality of urban objects and the planning process that approved their construction, specifically how time-dependence in urban structural-functional models produce temporal lags that alter the causal links between societal and political functional demands and structural ramifications.

Automated ortho-rectification of UAV-based hyperspectral data over an agricultural field using frame RGB imagery

DOE PAGES

Habib, Ayman; Han, Youkyung; Xiong, Weifeng; ...

2016-09-24

Low-cost Unmanned Airborne Vehicles (UAVs) equipped with consumer-grade imaging systems have emerged as a potential remote sensing platform that could satisfy the needs of a wide range of civilian applications. Among these applications, UAV-based agricultural mapping and monitoring have attracted significant attention from both the research and professional communities. The interest in UAV-based remote sensing for agricultural management is motivated by the need to maximize crop yield. Remote sensing-based crop yield prediction and estimation are primarily based on imaging systems with different spectral coverage and resolution (e.g., RGB and hyperspectral imaging systems). Due to the data volume, RGB imaging ismore » based on frame cameras, while hyperspectral sensors are primarily push-broom scanners. To cope with the limited endurance and payload constraints of low-cost UAVs, the agricultural research and professional communities have to rely on consumer-grade and light-weight sensors. However, the geometric fidelity of derived information from push-broom hyperspectral scanners is quite sensitive to the available position and orientation established through a direct geo-referencing unit onboard the imaging platform (i.e., an integrated Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and Inertial Navigation System (INS). This paper presents an automated framework for the integration of frame RGB images, push-broom hyperspectral scanner data and consumer-grade GNSS/INS navigation data for accurate geometric rectification of the hyperspectral scenes. The approach relies on utilizing the navigation data, together with a modified Speeded-Up Robust Feature (SURF) detector and descriptor, for automating the identification of conjugate features in the RGB and hyperspectral imagery. The SURF modification takes into consideration the available direct geo-referencing information to improve the reliability of the matching procedure in the presence of repetitive texture within a

Automated ortho-rectification of UAV-based hyperspectral data over an agricultural field using frame RGB imagery

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Habib, Ayman; Han, Youkyung; Xiong, Weifeng

Low-cost Unmanned Airborne Vehicles (UAVs) equipped with consumer-grade imaging systems have emerged as a potential remote sensing platform that could satisfy the needs of a wide range of civilian applications. Among these applications, UAV-based agricultural mapping and monitoring have attracted significant attention from both the research and professional communities. The interest in UAV-based remote sensing for agricultural management is motivated by the need to maximize crop yield. Remote sensing-based crop yield prediction and estimation are primarily based on imaging systems with different spectral coverage and resolution (e.g., RGB and hyperspectral imaging systems). Due to the data volume, RGB imaging ismore » based on frame cameras, while hyperspectral sensors are primarily push-broom scanners. To cope with the limited endurance and payload constraints of low-cost UAVs, the agricultural research and professional communities have to rely on consumer-grade and light-weight sensors. However, the geometric fidelity of derived information from push-broom hyperspectral scanners is quite sensitive to the available position and orientation established through a direct geo-referencing unit onboard the imaging platform (i.e., an integrated Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and Inertial Navigation System (INS). This paper presents an automated framework for the integration of frame RGB images, push-broom hyperspectral scanner data and consumer-grade GNSS/INS navigation data for accurate geometric rectification of the hyperspectral scenes. The approach relies on utilizing the navigation data, together with a modified Speeded-Up Robust Feature (SURF) detector and descriptor, for automating the identification of conjugate features in the RGB and hyperspectral imagery. The SURF modification takes into consideration the available direct geo-referencing information to improve the reliability of the matching procedure in the presence of repetitive texture within a

Nearshore Measurements From a Small UAV.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holman, R. A.; Brodie, K. L.; Spore, N.

2016-02-01

Traditional measurements of nearshore hydrodynamics and evolving bathymetry are expensive and dangerous and must be frequently repeated to track the rapid changes of typical ocean beaches. However, extensive research into remote sensing methods using cameras or radars mounted on fixed towers has resulted in increasingly mature algorithms for estimating bathymetry, currents and wave characteristics. This naturally raises questions about how easily and effectively these algorithms can be applied to optical data from low-cost, easily-available UAV platforms. This paper will address the characteristics and quality of data taken from a small, low-cost UAV, the DJI Phantom. In particular, we will study the stability of imagery from a vehicle `parked' at 300 feet altitude, methods to stabilize remaining wander, and the quality of nearshore bathymetry estimates from the resulting image time series, computed using the cBathy algorithm. Estimates will be compared to ground truth surveys collected at the Field Research Facility at Duck, NC.

Remote sensing of earth terrain

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kong, Jin AU; Yueh, Herng-Aung; Shin, Robert T.

1991-01-01

Abstracts from 46 refereed journal and conference papers are presented for research on remote sensing of earth terrain. The topics covered related to remote sensing include the following: mathematical models, vegetation cover, sea ice, finite difference theory, electromagnetic waves, polarimetry, neural networks, random media, synthetic aperture radar, electromagnetic bias, and others.

Demonstration of centimeter-level precision, swath mapping, full-waveform laser altimetry from high altitude on the Global Hawk UAV for future application to cryospheric remote sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blair, J. B.; Wake, S.; Rabine, D.; Hofton, M. A.; Mitchell, S.

2013-12-01

The Land Vegetation and Ice Sensor (LVIS) is a high-altitude, wide-swath laser altimeter that has, for over 15 years, demonstrated state-of-the-art performance in surface altimetry, including many aspects of remote sensing of the cryosphere such as precise topography of ice sheets and sea ice. NASA Goddard, in cooperation with NASA's Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO), has developed a new, more capable sensor that can operate autonomously from a high-altitude UAV aircraft to further enhance the LVIS capability and extend its reach and coverage. In June 2012, this latest sensor, known as LVIS-GH, was integrated onto NASA's Global Hawk aircraft and completed a successful high-altitude demonstration flight over Death Valley, Owens Valley, and the Sierra Nevada region of California. Data were collected over a wide variety of terrain types from 58,000' (> 17 km) altitude during the 6 hour long test flight. The full-waveform laser altimetry technique employed by LVIS and LVIS-GH provides precise surface topography measurements for solid earth and cryospheric applications and captures the vertical structure of forests in support of territorial ecology studies. LVIS-GH fully illuminates and maps a 4 km swath and provides cm-level range precision, as demonstrated in laboratory and horizontal range testing, as well as during this test flight. The cm range precision is notable as it applies to accurate measurements of sea ice freeboard and change detection of subtle surface deformation such as heaving in permafrost areas. In recent years, LVIS has primarily supported Operation IceBridge activities, including deployments to the Arctic and Antarctic on manned aircraft such as the NASA DC-8 and P-3. The LVIS-GH sensor provides an major upgrade of coverage capability and remote access; LVIS-GH operating on the long-duration Global Hawk aircraft can map up to 50,000 km^2 in a single flight and can provide access to remote regions such as the entirety of Antarctica. Future

Application of the remote-sensing communication model to a time-sensitive wildfire remote-sensing system

Treesearch

Christopher D. Lippitt; Douglas A. Stow; Philip J. Riggan

2016-01-01

Remote sensing for hazard response requires a priori identification of sensor, transmission, processing, and distribution methods to permit the extraction of relevant information in timescales sufficient to allow managers to make a given time-sensitive decision. This study applies and demonstrates the utility of the Remote Sensing Communication...

Some fundamental concepts in remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1982-01-01

The term remote sensing is defined as well as ideas such as class, pattern, feature, pattern recognition, feature extraction, and theme. The electromagnetic spectrum is examined especially those wavelength regions available to remote sensing. Relevant energy and wave propagation laws are discussed and the characteristics of emitted and reflected radiation and their detection are investigated. The identification of classes by their spectral signatures, the multispectral approach, and the principal types of sensors and platforms used in remote sensing are also considered.

Microwave remote sensing of snowpack properties

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rango, A. (Editor)

1980-01-01

Topic concerning remote sensing capabilities for providing reliable snow cover data and measurement of snow water equivalents are discussed. Specific remote sensing technqiues discussed include those in the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Remote sensing procurement package: Remote Sensing Industry Directory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1981-01-01

A directory of over 140 firms and organizations which contains detailed information in the types of products, services and equipment which they offer is presented. Also included for each firm or organization are addresses, phone numbers, contact person(s), and experience in the remote sensing field.

Ten ways remote sensing can contribute to conservation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rose, Robert A.; Byler, Dirck; Eastman, J. Ron; Fleishman, Erica; Geller, Gary; Goetz, Scott; Guild, Liane; Hamilton, Healy; Hansen, Matt; Headley, Rachel; Hewson, Jennifer; Horning, Ned; Kaplin, Beth A.; Laporte, Nadine; Leidner, Allison K.; Leimgruber, Peter; Morisette, Jeffrey T.; Musinsky, John; Pintea, Lilian; Prados, Ana; Radeloff, Volker C.; Rowen, Mary; Saatchi, Sassan; Schill, Steve; Tabor, Karyn; Turner, Woody; Vodacek, Anthony; Vogelmann, James; Wegmann, Martin; Wilkie, David; Wilson, Cara

2014-01-01

In an effort to increase conservation effectiveness through the use of Earth observation technologies, a group of remote sensing scientists affiliated with government and academic institutions and conservation organizations identified 10 questions in conservation for which the potential to be answered would be greatly increased by use of remotely sensed data and analyses of those data. Our goals were to increase conservation practitioners’ use of remote sensing to support their work, increase collaboration between the conservation science and remote sensing communities, identify and develop new and innovative uses of remote sensing for advancing conservation science, provide guidance to space agencies on how future satellite missions can support conservation science, and generate support from the public and private sector in the use of remote sensing data to address the 10 conservation questions. We identified a broad initial list of questions on the basis of an email chain-referral survey. We then used a workshop-based iterative and collaborative approach to whittle the list down to these final questions (which represent 10 major themes in conservation): How can global Earth observation data be used to model species distributions and abundances? How can remote sensing improve the understanding of animal movements? How can remotely sensed ecosystem variables be used to understand, monitor, and predict ecosystem response and resilience to multiple stressors? How can remote sensing be used to monitor the effects of climate on ecosystems? How can near real-time ecosystem monitoring catalyze threat reduction, governance and regulation compliance, and resource management decisions? How can remote sensing inform configuration of protected area networks at spatial extents relevant to populations of target species and ecosystem services? How can remote sensing-derived products be used to value and monitor changes in ecosystem services? How can remote sensing be used to

Ten ways remote sensing can contribute to conservation.

PubMed

Rose, Robert A; Byler, Dirck; Eastman, J Ron; Fleishman, Erica; Geller, Gary; Goetz, Scott; Guild, Liane; Hamilton, Healy; Hansen, Matt; Headley, Rachel; Hewson, Jennifer; Horning, Ned; Kaplin, Beth A; Laporte, Nadine; Leidner, Allison; Leimgruber, Peter; Morisette, Jeffrey; Musinsky, John; Pintea, Lilian; Prados, Ana; Radeloff, Volker C; Rowen, Mary; Saatchi, Sassan; Schill, Steve; Tabor, Karyn; Turner, Woody; Vodacek, Anthony; Vogelmann, James; Wegmann, Martin; Wilkie, David; Wilson, Cara

2015-04-01

In an effort to increase conservation effectiveness through the use of Earth observation technologies, a group of remote sensing scientists affiliated with government and academic institutions and conservation organizations identified 10 questions in conservation for which the potential to be answered would be greatly increased by use of remotely sensed data and analyses of those data. Our goals were to increase conservation practitioners' use of remote sensing to support their work, increase collaboration between the conservation science and remote sensing communities, identify and develop new and innovative uses of remote sensing for advancing conservation science, provide guidance to space agencies on how future satellite missions can support conservation science, and generate support from the public and private sector in the use of remote sensing data to address the 10 conservation questions. We identified a broad initial list of questions on the basis of an email chain-referral survey. We then used a workshop-based iterative and collaborative approach to whittle the list down to these final questions (which represent 10 major themes in conservation): How can global Earth observation data be used to model species distributions and abundances? How can remote sensing improve the understanding of animal movements? How can remotely sensed ecosystem variables be used to understand, monitor, and predict ecosystem response and resilience to multiple stressors? How can remote sensing be used to monitor the effects of climate on ecosystems? How can near real-time ecosystem monitoring catalyze threat reduction, governance and regulation compliance, and resource management decisions? How can remote sensing inform configuration of protected area networks at spatial extents relevant to populations of target species and ecosystem services? How can remote sensing-derived products be used to value and monitor changes in ecosystem services? How can remote sensing be used to

Polarimetric Interferometry - Remote Sensing Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-02-01

This lecture is mainly based on the work of S.R. Cloude and presents examples for remote sensing applications Polarimetric SAR Interferometry...PolInSAR). PolInSAR has its origins in remote sensing and was first developed for applications in 1997 using SIRC L-Band data [1,2]. In its original form it

Satellite Remote Sensing: Aerosol Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kahn, Ralph A.

2013-01-01

Aerosols are solid or liquid particles suspended in the air, and those observed by satellite remote sensing are typically between about 0.05 and 10 microns in size. (Note that in traditional aerosol science, the term "aerosol" refers to both the particles and the medium in which they reside, whereas for remote sensing, the term commonly refers to the particles only. In this article, we adopt the remote-sensing definition.) They originate from a great diversity of sources, such as wildfires, volcanoes, soils and desert sands, breaking waves, natural biological activity, agricultural burning, cement production, and fossil fuel combustion. They typically remain in the atmosphere from several days to a week or more, and some travel great distances before returning to Earth's surface via gravitational settling or washout by precipitation. Many aerosol sources exhibit strong seasonal variability, and most experience inter-annual fluctuations. As such, the frequent, global coverage that space-based aerosol remote-sensing instruments can provide is making increasingly important contributions to regional and larger-scale aerosol studies.

Applications of remote sensing to watershed management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rango, A.

1975-01-01

Aircraft and satellite remote sensing systems which are capable of contributing to watershed management are described and include: the multispectral scanner subsystem on LANDSAT and the basic multispectral camera array flown on high altitude aircraft such as the U-2. Various aspects of watershed management investigated by remote sensing systems are discussed. Major areas included are: snow mapping, surface water inventories, flood management, hydrologic land use monitoring, and watershed modeling. It is indicated that technological advances in remote sensing of hydrological data must be coupled with an expansion of awareness and training in remote sensing techniques of the watershed management community.

A method of fast mosaic for massive UAV images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiang, Ren; Sun, Min; Jiang, Cheng; Liu, Lei; Zheng, Hui; Li, Xiaodong

2014-11-01

With the development of UAV technology, UAVs are used widely in multiple fields such as agriculture, forest protection, mineral exploration, natural disaster management and surveillances of public security events. In contrast of traditional manned aerial remote sensing platforms, UAVs are cheaper and more flexible to use. So users can obtain massive image data with UAVs, but this requires a lot of time to process the image data, for example, Pix4UAV need approximately 10 hours to process 1000 images in a high performance PC. But disaster management and many other fields require quick respond which is hard to realize with massive image data. Aiming at improving the disadvantage of high time consumption and manual interaction, in this article a solution of fast UAV image stitching is raised. GPS and POS data are used to pre-process the original images from UAV, belts and relation between belts and images are recognized automatically by the program, in the same time useless images are picked out. This can boost the progress of finding match points between images. Levenberg-Marquard algorithm is improved so that parallel computing can be applied to shorten the time of global optimization notably. Besides traditional mosaic result, it can also generate superoverlay result for Google Earth, which can provide a fast and easy way to show the result data. In order to verify the feasibility of this method, a fast mosaic system of massive UAV images is developed, which is fully automated and no manual interaction is needed after original images and GPS data are provided. A test using 800 images of Kelan River in Xinjiang Province shows that this system can reduce 35%-50% time consumption in contrast of traditional methods, and increases respond speed of UAV image processing rapidly.

Introduction to the physics and techniques of remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Elachi, Charles

1987-01-01

This book presents a comprehensive overview of the basics behind remote-sensing physics, techniques, and technology. The physics of wave/matter interactions, techniques of remote sensing across the electromagnetic spectrum, and the concepts behind remote sensing techniques now established and future ones under development are discussed. Applications of remote sensing are described for a wide variety of earth and planetary atmosphere and surface sciences. Solid surface sensing across the electromagnetic spectrum, ocean surface sensing, basic principles of atmospheric sensing and radiative transfer, and atmospheric remote sensing in the microwave, millimeter, submillimeter, and infrared regions are examined.

UAV-based high-throughput phenotyping in legume crops

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sankaran, Sindhuja; Khot, Lav R.; Quirós, Juan; Vandemark, George J.; McGee, Rebecca J.

2016-05-01

In plant breeding, one of the biggest obstacles in genetic improvement is the lack of proven rapid methods for measuring plant responses in field conditions. Therefore, the major objective of this research was to evaluate the feasibility of utilizing high-throughput remote sensing technology for rapid measurement of phenotyping traits in legume crops. The plant responses of several chickpea and peas varieties to the environment were assessed with an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) integrated with multispectral imaging sensors. Our preliminary assessment showed that the vegetation indices are strongly correlated (p<0.05) with seed yield of legume crops. Results endorse the potential of UAS-based sensing technology to rapidly measure those phenotyping traits.

Remote Sensing of Environmental Pollution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

North, G. W.

1971-01-01

Environmental pollution is a problem of international scope and concern. It can be subdivided into problems relating to water, air, or land pollution. Many of the problems in these three categories lend themselves to study and possible solution by remote sensing. Through the use of remote sensing systems and techniques, it is possible to detect and monitor, and in some cases, identify, measure, and study the effects of various environmental pollutants. As a guide for making decisions regarding the use of remote sensors for pollution studies, a special five-dimensional sensor/applications matrix has been designed. The matrix defines an environmental goal, ranks the various remote sensing objectives in terms of their ability to assist in solving environmental problems, lists the environmental problems, ranks the sensors that can be used for collecting data on each problem, and finally ranks the sensor platform options that are currently available.

Commercial future: making remote sensing a media event

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lurie, Ian

1999-12-01

The rapid growth of commercial remote sensing has made high quality digital sensing data widely available -- now, remote sensing must become and remain a strong, commercially viable industry. However, this new industry cannot survive without an educated consumer base. To access markets, remote sensing providers must make their product more accessible, both literally and figuratively: Potential customers must be able to find the data they require, when they require it, and they must understand the utility of the information available to them. The Internet and the World Wide Web offer the perfect medium to educate potential customers and to sell remote sensing data to those customers. A well-designed web presence can provide both an information center and a market place for companies offering their data for sale. A very high potential web-based market for remote sensing lies in media. News agencies, web sites, and a host of other visual media services can use remote sensing data to provide current, relevant information regarding news around the world. This paper will provide a model for promotion and sale of remote sensing data via the Internet.

Water stress index for alkaline fen habitat based on UAV and continuous tower measurements of canopy infrared temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ciężkowski, Wojciech; Jóźwiak, Jacek; Chormański, Jarosław; Szporak-Wasilewska, Sylwia; Kleniewska, Małgorzata

2017-04-01

This study is focused on developing water stress index for alkaline fen, to evaluate water stress impact on habitat protected within Natura 2000 network: alkaline fens (habitat code:7230). It is calculated based on continuous measurements of air temperature, relative humidity and canopy temperature from meteorological tower and several UAV flights for canopy temperature registration. Measurements were taken during the growing season in 2016 in the Upper Biebrza Basin in north-east Poland. Firstly methodology of the crop water stress index (CWSI) determination was used to obtained non-water stress base line based on continuous measurements (NWSBtower). Parameters of NWSBtower were directly used to calculate spatial variability of CWSI for UAV thermal infrared (TIR) images. Then for each UAV flight day at least 3 acquisition were performed to define NWSBUAV. NWSBUAV was used to calculate canopy waters stress for whole image relative to the less stressed areas. The spatial distribution of developed index was verified using remotely sensed indices of vegetation health. Results showed that in analysed area covered by sedge-moss vegetation NWSB cannot be used directly. The proposed modification of CWSI allows identifying water stress in alkaline fen habitats and was called as Sedge-Moss Water Stress Index (SMWSI). The study shows possibility of usage remotely sensed canopy temperature data to detect areas exposed to the water stress on wetlands. This research has been carried out under the Biostrateg Programme of the Polish National Centre for Research and Development (NCBiR), project No.: DZP/BIOSTRATEG-II/390/2015: The innovative approach supporting monitoring of non-forest Natura 2000 habitats, using remote sensing methods (HabitARS).

Brazil's remote sensing activities in the Eighties

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Raupp, M. A.; Pereiradacunha, R.; Novaes, R. A.

1985-01-01

Most of the remote sensing activities in Brazil have been conducted by the Institute for Space Research (INPE). This report describes briefly INPE's activities in remote sensing in the last years. INPE has been engaged in research (e.g., radiance studies), development (e.g., CCD-scanners, image processing devices) and applications (e.g., crop survey, land use, mineral resources, etc.) of remote sensing. INPE is also responsible for the operation (data reception and processing) of the LANDSATs and meteorological satellites. Data acquisition activities include the development of CCD-Camera to be deployed on board the space shuttle and the construction of a remote sensing satellite.

Basic Remote Sensing Investigations for Beach Reconnaissance.

DTIC Science & Technology

Progress is reported on three tasks designed to develop remote sensing beach reconnaissance techniques applicable to the benthic, beach intertidal...and beach upland zones. Task 1 is designed to develop remote sensing indicators of important beach composition and physical parameters which will...ultimately prove useful in models to predict beach conditions. Task 2 is designed to develop remote sensing techniques for survey of bottom features in

FluidCam 1&2 - UAV-based Fluid Lensing Instruments for High-Resolution 3D Subaqueous Imaging and Automated Remote Biosphere Assessment of Reef Ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chirayath, V.; Instrella, R.

2016-02-01

We present NASA ESTO FluidCam 1 & 2, Visible and NIR Fluid-Lensing-enabled imaging payloads for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Developed as part of a focused 2014 earth science technology grant, FluidCam 1&2 are Fluid-Lensing-based computational optical imagers designed for automated 3D mapping and remote sensing of underwater coastal targets from airborne platforms. Fluid Lensing has been used to map underwater reefs in 3D in American Samoa and Hamelin Pool, Australia from UAV platforms at sub-cm scale, which has proven a valuable tool in modern marine research for marine biosphere assessment and conservation. We share FluidCam 1&2 instrument validation and testing results as well as preliminary processed data from field campaigns. Petabyte-scale aerial survey efforts using Fluid Lensing to image at-risk reefs demonstrate broad applicability to large-scale automated species identification, morphology studies and reef ecosystem characterization for shallow marine environments and terrestrial biospheres, of crucial importance to improving bathymetry data for physical oceanographic models and understanding climate change's impact on coastal zones, global oxygen production, carbon sequestration.

FluidCam 1&2 - UAV-Based Fluid Lensing Instruments for High-Resolution 3D Subaqueous Imaging and Automated Remote Biosphere Assessment of Reef Ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chirayath, V.

2015-12-01

We present NASA ESTO FluidCam 1 & 2, Visible and NIR Fluid-Lensing-enabled imaging payloads for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Developed as part of a focused 2014 earth science technology grant, FluidCam 1&2 are Fluid-Lensing-based computational optical imagers designed for automated 3D mapping and remote sensing of underwater coastal targets from airborne platforms. Fluid Lensing has been used to map underwater reefs in 3D in American Samoa and Hamelin Pool, Australia from UAV platforms at sub-cm scale, which has proven a valuable tool in modern marine research for marine biosphere assessment and conservation. We share FluidCam 1&2 instrument validation and testing results as well as preliminary processed data from field campaigns. Petabyte-scale aerial survey efforts using Fluid Lensing to image at-risk reefs demonstrate broad applicability to large-scale automated species identification, morphology studies and reef ecosystem characterization for shallow marine environments and terrestrial biospheres, of crucial importance to improving bathymetry data for physical oceanographic models and understanding climate change's impact on coastal zones, global oxygen production, carbon sequestration.

Education in Environmental Remote Sensing: Potentials and Problems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kiefer, Ralph W.; Lillesand, Thomas M.

1983-01-01

Discusses remote sensing principles and applications and the status and needs of remote sensing education in the United States. A summary of the fundamental policy issues that will determine remote sensing's future role in environmental and resource managements is included. (Author/BC)

Role of remote sensing in documenting living resources

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wagner, P. E.; Anderson, R. R.; Brun, B.; Eisenberg, M.; Genys, J. B.; Lear, D. W., Jr.; Miller, M. H.

1978-01-01

Specific cases of known or potentially useful applications of remote sensing in assessing biological resources are discussed. It is concluded that the more usable remote sensing techniques relate to the measurement of population fluctuations in aquatic systems. Sensing of the flora and the fauna of the Bay is considered with emphasis on direct sensing of aquatic plant populations and of water quality. Recommendations for remote sensing projects are given.

JPRS Report, Science & Technology, China, Remote Sensing Systems, Applications.

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-01-17

Partial Contents: Short Introduction to Nation’s Remote Sensing Units, Domestic Airborne Remote - Sensing System, Applications in Monitoring Natural...Disasters, Applications of Imagery From Experimental Satellites Launched in 1985, 1986, Current Status, Future Prospects for Domestic Remote - Sensing -Satellite...Ground Station, and Radar Remote - Sensing Technology Used to Monitor Yellow River Delta,

Middle infrared remote sensing for geology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kahle, A. B.

1982-01-01

The middle infrared portion of the spectrum available for geologic remote sensing extends from approximately 3 to 25 micrometers. The source of energy is thermal radiation from surface materials and ambient terrestrial temperatures. The spectral range of usefulness is limited by both the amount of energy available and by transmission of energy through the atmosphere. The best atmospheric window lies between about 8 and 14 micrometers. Remote sensing of the Earth in the infrared is just on the threshold of becoming a valuable geologic tool. Topics which need study include: (1) the used and limitations of the 8 to 14 micrometer region for distinguishing between silicates and nonsilicates; (2) theoretical and experimental understanding of laboratory spectra of rocks and minerals and their relationship to remotely sensed emission spectra; and (3) the possible use of the 3 to 5 and 17 to 25 micrometer portions of the spectrum for remote sensing.

Structurally Integrated Antenna Concepts for HALE UAVs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cravey, Robin L.; Vedeler, Erik; Goins, Larry; Young, W. Robert; Lawrence, Roland W.

2006-01-01

This technical memorandum describes work done in support of the Multifunctional Structures and Materials Team under the Vehicle Systems Program's ITAS (Integrated Tailored Aero Structures) Project during FY 2005. The Electromagnetics and Sensors Branch (ESB) developed three ultra lightweight antenna concepts compatible with HALE UAVs (High Altitude Long Endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicles). ESB also developed antenna elements that minimize the interaction between elements and the vehicle to minimize the impact of wing flexure on the EM (electromagnetic) performance of the integrated array. In addition, computer models were developed to perform phase correction for antenna arrays whose elements are moving relative to each other due to wing deformations expected in HALE vehicle concepts. Development of lightweight, conformal or structurally integrated antenna elements and compensating for the impact of a lightweight, flexible structure on a large antenna array are important steps in the realization of HALE UAVs for microwave applications such as passive remote sensing and communications.

Multi-temporal UAV based data for mapping crop type and structure in smallholder dominated Tanzanian agricultural landscape

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nagol, J. R.; Chung, C.; Dempewolf, J.; Maurice, S.; Mbungu, W.; Tumbo, S.

2015-12-01

Timely mapping and monitoring of crops like Maize, an important food security crop in Tanzania, can facilitate timely response by government and non-government organizations to food shortage or surplus conditions. Small UAVs can play an important role in linking the spaceborne remote sensing data and ground based measurement to improve the calibration and validation of satellite based estimates of in-season crop metrics. In Tanzania most of the growing season is often obscured by clouds. UAV data, if collected within a stratified statistical sampling framework, can also be used to directly in lieu of spaceborne data to infer mid-season yield estimates at regional scales.Here we present an object based approach to estimate crop metrics like crop type, area, and height using multi-temporal UAV based imagery. The methods were tested at three 1km2 plots in Kilosa, Njombe, and Same districts in Tanzania. At these sites both ground based and UAV based data were collected on a monthly time-step during the year 2015 growing season. SenseFly eBee drone with RGB and NIR-R-G camera was used to collect data. Crop type classification accuracies of above 85% were easily achieved.

An introduction to quantitative remote sensing. [data processing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lindenlaub, J. C.; Russell, J.

1974-01-01

The quantitative approach to remote sensing is discussed along with the analysis of remote sensing data. Emphasis is placed on the application of pattern recognition in numerically oriented remote sensing systems. A common background and orientation for users of the LARS computer software system is provided.

Ionospheric Profiles from Ultraviolet Remote Sensing

DTIC Science & Technology

1997-09-30

The long-term goal of this project is to obtain ionospheric profiles from ultraviolet remote sensing of the ionosphere from orbiting space platforms... Remote sensing of the nighttime ionosphere is a more straightforward process because of the absence of the complications brought about by daytime

Remote sensing and urban public health

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rush, M.; Vernon, S.

1975-01-01

The applicability of remote sensing in the form of aerial photography to urban public health problems is examined. Environmental characteristics are analyzed to determine if health differences among areas could be predicted from the visual expression of remote sensing data. The analysis is carried out on a socioeconomic cross-sectional sample of census block groups. Six morbidity and mortality rates are the independent variables while environmental measures from aerial photographs and from the census constitute the two independent variable sets. It is found that environmental data collected by remote sensing are as good as census data in evaluating rates of health outcomes.

Hyperspectral remote sensing for terrestrial applications

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thenkabail, Prasad S.; Teluguntla, Pardhasaradhi G.; Murali Krishna Gumma,; Venkateswarlu Dheeravath,

2015-01-01

Remote sensing data are considered hyperspectral when the data are gathered from numerous wavebands, contiguously over an entire range of the spectrum (e.g., 400–2500 nm). Goetz (1992) defines hyperspectral remote sensing as “The acquisition of images in hundreds of registered, contiguous spectral bands such that for each picture element of an image it is possible to derive a complete reflectance spectrum.” However, Jensen (2004) defines hyperspectral remote sensing as “The simultaneous acquisition of images in many relatively narrow, contiguous and/or non contiguous spectral bands throughout the ultraviolet, visible, and infrared portions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

An international organization for remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Helm, Neil R.; Edelson, Burton I.

1991-01-01

A recommendation is presented for the formation of a new commercially oriented international organization to acquire or develop, coordinate or manage, the space and ground segments for a global operational satellite system to furnish the basic data for remote sensing and meteorological, land, and sea resource applications. The growing numbers of remote sensing programs are examined and possible ways of reducing redundant efforts and improving the coordination and distribution of these global efforts are discussed. This proposed remote sensing organization could play an important role in international cooperation and the distribution of scientific, commercial, and public good data.

Practical applications of remote sensing technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whitmore, Roy A., Jr.

1990-01-01

Land managers increasingly are becoming dependent upon remote sensing and automated analysis techniques for information gathering and synthesis. Remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) techniques provide quick and economical information gathering for large areas. The outputs of remote sensing classification and analysis are most effective when combined with a total natural resources data base within the capabilities of a computerized GIS. Some examples are presented of the successes, as well as the problems, in integrating remote sensing and geographic information systems. The need to exploit remotely sensed data and the potential that geographic information systems offer for managing and analyzing such data continues to grow. New microcomputers with vastly enlarged memory, multi-fold increases in operating speed and storage capacity that was previously available only on mainframe computers are a reality. Improved raster GIS software systems have been developed for these high performance microcomputers. Vector GIS systems previously reserved for mini and mainframe systems are available to operate on these enhanced microcomputers. One of the more exciting areas that is beginning to emerge is the integration of both raster and vector formats on a single computer screen. This technology will allow satellite imagery or digital aerial photography to be presented as a background to a vector display.

Stochastic global identification of a bio-inspired self-sensing composite UAV wing via wind tunnel experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kopsaftopoulos, Fotios; Nardari, Raphael; Li, Yu-Hung; Wang, Pengchuan; Chang, Fu-Kuo

2016-04-01

In this work, the system design, integration, and wind tunnel experimental evaluation are presented for a bioinspired self-sensing intelligent composite unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) wing. A total of 148 micro-sensors, including piezoelectric, strain, and temperature sensors, in the form of stretchable sensor networks are embedded in the layup of a composite wing in order to enable its self-sensing capabilities. Novel stochastic system identification techniques based on time series models and statistical parameter estimation are employed in order to accurately interpret the sensing data and extract real-time information on the coupled air flow-structural dynamics. Special emphasis is given to the wind tunnel experimental assessment under various flight conditions defined by multiple airspeeds and angles of attack. A novel modeling approach based on the recently introduced Vector-dependent Functionally Pooled (VFP) model structure is employed for the stochastic identification of the "global" coupled airflow-structural dynamics of the wing and their correlation with dynamic utter and stall. The obtained results demonstrate the successful system-level integration and effectiveness of the stochastic identification approach, thus opening new perspectives for the state sensing and awareness capabilities of the next generation of "fly-by-fee" UAVs.

Oceanographic Remote Sensing; A Position Paper,

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-01-26

The purpose of a Navy R&D remote sensing plan should be to set forth the requirements and direction of basic and exploratory research in satellite... remote sensing which supports the overall Navy oceanographic research and operational programs. The aim of the plan would be to outline the established...addressed. The plan should help serve as a single technology and program reference for implementation and planning of Navy related satellite remote

Educational activities of remote sensing archaeology (Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hadjimitsis, Diofantos G.; Agapiou, Athos; Lysandrou, Vasilki; Themistocleous, Kyriacos; Cuca, Branka; Nisantzi, Argyro; Lasaponara, Rosa; Masini, Nicola; Krauss, Thomas; Cerra, Daniele; Gessner, Ursula; Schreier, Gunter

2016-10-01

Remote sensing science is increasingly being used to support archaeological and cultural heritage research in various ways. Satellite sensors either passive or active are currently used in a systematic basis to detect buried archaeological remains and to systematic monitor tangible heritage. In addition, airborne and low altitude systems are being used for documentation purposes. Ground surveys using remote sensing tools such as spectroradiometers and ground penetrating radars can detect variations of vegetation and soil respectively, which are linked to the presence of underground archaeological features. Education activities and training of remote sensing archaeology to young people is characterized of highly importance. Specific remote sensing tools relevant for archaeological research can be developed including web tools, small libraries, interactive learning games etc. These tools can be then combined and aligned with archaeology and cultural heritage. This can be achieved by presenting historical and pre-historical records, excavated sites or even artifacts under a "remote sensing" approach. Using such non-form educational approach, the students can be involved, ask, read, and seek to learn more about remote sensing and of course to learn about history. The paper aims to present a modern didactical concept and some examples of practical implementation of remote sensing archaeology in secondary schools in Cyprus. The idea was built upon an ongoing project (ATHENA) focused on the sue of remote sensing for archaeological research in Cyprus. Through H2020 ATHENA project, the Remote Sensing Science and Geo-Environment Research Laboratory at the Cyprus University of Technology (CUT), with the support of the National Research Council of Italy (CNR) and the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) aims to enhance its performance in all these new technologies.

Estimating evaporation with thermal UAV data and two-source energy balance models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoffmann, H.; Nieto, H.; Jensen, R.; Guzinski, R.; Zarco-Tejada, P.; Friborg, T.

2016-02-01

Estimating evaporation is important when managing water resources and cultivating crops. Evaporation can be estimated using land surface heat flux models and remotely sensed land surface temperatures (LST), which have recently become obtainable in very high resolution using lightweight thermal cameras and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). In this study a thermal camera was mounted on a UAV and applied into the field of heat fluxes and hydrology by concatenating thermal images into mosaics of LST and using these as input for the two-source energy balance (TSEB) modelling scheme. Thermal images are obtained with a fixed-wing UAV overflying a barley field in western Denmark during the growing season of 2014 and a spatial resolution of 0.20 m is obtained in final LST mosaics. Two models are used: the original TSEB model (TSEB-PT) and a dual-temperature-difference (DTD) model. In contrast to the TSEB-PT model, the DTD model accounts for the bias that is likely present in remotely sensed LST. TSEB-PT and DTD have already been well tested, however only during sunny weather conditions and with satellite images serving as thermal input. The aim of this study is to assess whether a lightweight thermal camera mounted on a UAV is able to provide data of sufficient quality to constitute as model input and thus attain accurate and high spatial and temporal resolution surface energy heat fluxes, with special focus on latent heat flux (evaporation). Furthermore, this study evaluates the performance of the TSEB scheme during cloudy and overcast weather conditions, which is feasible due to the low data retrieval altitude (due to low UAV flying altitude) compared to satellite thermal data that are only available during clear-sky conditions. TSEB-PT and DTD fluxes are compared and validated against eddy covariance measurements and the comparison shows that both TSEB-PT and DTD simulations are in good agreement with eddy covariance measurements, with DTD obtaining the best results. The

Exploring Models and Data for Remote Sensing Image Caption Generation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Xiaoqiang; Wang, Binqiang; Zheng, Xiangtao; Li, Xuelong

2018-04-01

Inspired by recent development of artificial satellite, remote sensing images have attracted extensive attention. Recently, noticeable progress has been made in scene classification and target detection.However, it is still not clear how to describe the remote sensing image content with accurate and concise sentences. In this paper, we investigate to describe the remote sensing images with accurate and flexible sentences. First, some annotated instructions are presented to better describe the remote sensing images considering the special characteristics of remote sensing images. Second, in order to exhaustively exploit the contents of remote sensing images, a large-scale aerial image data set is constructed for remote sensing image caption. Finally, a comprehensive review is presented on the proposed data set to fully advance the task of remote sensing caption. Extensive experiments on the proposed data set demonstrate that the content of the remote sensing image can be completely described by generating language descriptions. The data set is available at https://github.com/201528014227051/RSICD_optimal

Assessing very high resolution UAV imagery for monitoring forest health during a simulated disease outbreak

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dash, Jonathan P.; Watt, Michael S.; Pearse, Grant D.; Heaphy, Marie; Dungey, Heidi S.

2017-09-01

Research into remote sensing tools for monitoring physiological stress caused by biotic and abiotic factors is critical for maintaining healthy and highly-productive plantation forests. Significant research has focussed on assessing forest health using remotely sensed data from satellites and manned aircraft. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) may provide new tools for improved forest health monitoring by providing data with very high temporal and spatial resolutions. These platforms also pose unique challenges and methods for health assessments must be validated before use. In this research, we simulated a disease outbreak in mature Pinus radiata D. Don trees using targeted application of herbicide. The objective was to acquire a time-series simulated disease expression dataset to develop methods for monitoring physiological stress from a UAV platform. Time-series multi-spectral imagery was acquired using a UAV flown over a trial at regular intervals. Traditional field-based health assessments of crown health (density) and needle health (discolouration) were carried out simultaneously by experienced forest health experts. Our results showed that multi-spectral imagery collected from a UAV is useful for identifying physiological stress in mature plantation trees even during the early stages of tree stress. We found that physiological stress could be detected earliest in data from the red edge and near infra-red bands. In contrast to previous findings, red edge data did not offer earlier detection of physiological stress than the near infra-red data. A non-parametric approach was used to model physiological stress based on spectral indices and was found to provide good classification accuracy (weighted kappa = 0.694). This model can be used to map physiological stress based on high-resolution multi-spectral data.

Remote Sensing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Richard S., Jr.; Kover, Allan W.

1978-01-01

The steady growth of the Landsat image data base continues to make this kind of remotely sensed data second only to aerial photographs in use by geoscientists who employ image data in their research. Article reviews data uses, meetings and symposia, publications, problems, and future trends. (Author/MA)

SUSI 62 A Robust and Safe Parachute Uav with Long Flight Time and Good Payload

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thamm, H. P.

2011-09-01

In many research areas in the geo-sciences (erosion, land use, land cover change, etc.) or applications (e.g. forest management, mining, land management etc.) there is a demand for remote sensing images of a very high spatial and temporal resolution. Due to the high costs of classic aerial photo campaigns, the use of a UAV is a promising option for obtaining the desired remote sensed information at the time it is needed. However, the UAV must be easy to operate, safe, robust and should have a high payload and long flight time. For that purpose, the parachute UAV SUSI 62 was developed. It consists of a steel frame with a powerful 62 cm3 2- stroke engine and a parachute wing. The frame can be easily disassembled for transportation or to replace parts. On the frame there is a gimbal mounted sensor carrier where different sensors, standard SLR cameras and/or multi-spectral and thermal sensors can be mounted. Due to the design of the parachute, the SUSI 62 is very easy to control. Two different parachute sizes are available for different wind speed conditions. The SUSI 62 has a payload of up to 8 kg providing options to use different sensors at the same time or to extend flight duration. The SUSI 62 needs a runway of between 10 m and 50 m, depending on the wind conditions. The maximum flight speed is approximately 50 km/h. It can be operated in a wind speed of up to 6 m/s. The design of the system utilising a parachute UAV makes it comparatively safe as a failure of the electronics or the remote control only results in the UAV coming to the ground at a slow speed. The video signal from the camera, the GPS coordinates and other flight parameters are transmitted to the ground station in real time. An autopilot is available, which guarantees that the area of investigation is covered at the desired resolution and overlap. The robustly designed SUSI 62 has been used successfully in Europe, Africa and Australia for scientific projects and also for agricultural, forestry and

Remote Sensing Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1973-01-01

The applications are reported of new remote sensing techniques for earth resources surveys and environmental monitoring. Applications discussed include: vegetation systems, environmental monitoring, and plant protection. Data processing systems are described.

Communicating remote sensing concepts in an interdisciplinary environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chung, R.

1981-01-01

Although remote sensing is currently multidisciplinary in its applications, many of its terms come from the engineering sciences, particularly from the field of pattern recognition. Scholars from fields such as the social sciences, botany, and biology, may experience initial difficulty with remote sensing terminology, even though parallel concepts exist in their own fields. Some parallel concepts and terminologies from nonengineering fields, which might enhance the understanding of remote sensing concepts in an interdisciplinary situation are identified. Feedbacks which this analogue strategy might have on remote sensing itself are explored.

Three-dimensional estimates of tree canopies: Scaling from high-resolution UAV data to satellite observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sankey, T.; Donald, J.; McVay, J.

2015-12-01

High resolution remote sensing images and datasets are typically acquired at a large cost, which poses big a challenge for many scientists. Northern Arizona University recently acquired a custom-engineered, cutting-edge UAV and we can now generate our own images with the instrument. The UAV has a unique capability to carry a large payload including a hyperspectral sensor, which images the Earth surface in over 350 spectral bands at 5 cm resolution, and a lidar scanner, which images the land surface and vegetation in 3-dimensions. Both sensors represent the newest available technology with very high resolution, precision, and accuracy. Using the UAV sensors, we are monitoring the effects of regional forest restoration treatment efforts. Individual tree canopy width and height are measured in the field and via the UAV sensors. The high-resolution UAV images are then used to segment individual tree canopies and to derive 3-dimensional estimates. The UAV image-derived variables are then correlated to the field-based measurements and scaled to satellite-derived tree canopy measurements. The relationships between the field-based and UAV-derived estimates are then extrapolated to a larger area to scale the tree canopy dimensions and to estimate tree density within restored and control forest sites.

Remote Sensing Training for Middle School through the Center of Excellence in Remote Sensing Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hayden, L. B.; Johnson, D.; Baltrop, J.

2012-12-01

Remote sensing has steadily become an integral part of multiple disciplines, research, and education. Remote sensing can be defined as the process of acquiring information about an object or area of interest without physical contact. As remote sensing becomes a necessity in solving real world problems and scientific questions an important question to consider is why remote sensing training is significant to education and is it relevant to training students in this discipline. What has been discovered is the interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields, specifically remote sensing, has declined in our youth. The Center of Excellence in Remote Sensing Education and Research (CERSER) continuously strives to provide education and research opportunities on ice sheet, coastal, ocean, and marine science. One of those continued outreach efforts are Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets (CReSIS) Middle School Program. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation CReSIS Middle School Program offers hands on experience for middle school students. CERSER and NSF offer students the opportunity to study and learn about remote sensing and its vital role in today's society as it relate to climate change and real world problems. The CReSIS Middle School Program is an annual two-week effort that offers middle school students experience with remote sensing and its applications. Specifically, participants received training with Global Positioning Systems (GPS) where the students learned the tools, mechanisms, and applications of a Garmin 60 GPS. As a part of the program the students were required to complete a fieldwork assignment where several longitude and latitude points were given throughout campus. The students had to then enter the longitude and latitude points into the Garmin 60 GPS, navigate their way to each location while also accurately reading the GPS to make sure travel was in the right direction. Upon completion of GPS training the

Vertical profiles of aerosol mass concentration derived by unmanned airborne in situ and remote sensing instruments during dust events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mamali, Dimitra; Marinou, Eleni; Sciare, Jean; Pikridas, Michael; Kokkalis, Panagiotis; Kottas, Michael; Binietoglou, Ioannis; Tsekeri, Alexandra; Keleshis, Christos; Engelmann, Ronny; Baars, Holger; Ansmann, Albert; Amiridis, Vassilis; Russchenberg, Herman; Biskos, George

2018-05-01

In situ measurements using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and remote sensing observations can independently provide dense vertically resolved measurements of atmospheric aerosols, information which is strongly required in climate models. In both cases, inverting the recorded signals to useful information requires assumptions and constraints, and this can make the comparison of the results difficult. Here we compare, for the first time, vertical profiles of the aerosol mass concentration derived from light detection and ranging (lidar) observations and in situ measurements using an optical particle counter on board a UAV during moderate and weak Saharan dust episodes. Agreement between the two measurement methods was within experimental uncertainty for the coarse mode (i.e. particles having radii > 0.5 µm), where the properties of dust particles can be assumed with good accuracy. This result proves that the two techniques can be used interchangeably for determining the vertical profiles of aerosol concentrations, bringing them a step closer towards their systematic exploitation in climate models.

LWIR Microgrid Polarimeter for Remote Sensing Studies

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-02-28

Polarimeter for Remote Sensing Studies 5b. GRANT NUMBER FA9550-08-1-0295 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) 5d. PROJECT NUMBER 1. Scott Tyo 5e. TASK...and tested at the University of Arizona, and preliminary images are shown in this final report. 15. SUBJECT TERMS Remote Sensing , polarimetry 16...7.0 LWIR Microgrid Polarimeter for Remote Sensing Studies J. Scott Tyo College of Optical Sciences University of Arizona Tucson, AZ, 85721 tyo

Remote sensing for urban planning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, Bruce A.; Schmidt, Nicholas; Jensen, John R.; Cowen, Dave J.; Halls, Joanne; Narumalani, Sunil; Burgess, Bryan

1994-01-01

Utility companies are challenged to provide services to a highly dynamic customer base. With factory closures and shifts in employment becoming a routine occurrence, the utility industry must develop new techniques to maintain records and plan for expected growth. BellSouth Telecommunications, the largest of the Bell telephone companies, currently serves over 13 million residences and 2 million commercial customers. Tracking the movement of customers and scheduling the delivery of service are major tasks for BellSouth that require intensive manpower and sophisticated information management techniques. Through NASA's Commercial Remote Sensing Program Office, BellSouth is investigating the utility of remote sensing and geographic information system techniques to forecast residential development. This paper highlights the initial results of this project, which indicate a high correlation between the U.S. Bureau of Census block group statistics and statistics derived from remote sensing data.

[A review on polarization information in the remote sensing detection].

PubMed

Gong, Jie-Qiong; Zhan, Hai-Gang; Liu, Da-Zhao

2010-04-01

Polarization is one of the inherent characteristics. Because the surface of the target structure, internal structure, and the angle of incident light are different, the earth's surface and any target in atmosphere under optical interaction process will have their own characteristic nature of polarization. Polarimetric characteristics of radiation energy from the targets are used in polarization remote sensing detection as detective information. Polarization remote sensing detection can get the seven-dimensional information of targets in complicated backgrounds, detect well-resolved outline of targets and low-reflectance region of objectives, and resolve the problems of atmospheric detection and identification camouflage detection which the traditional remote sensing detection can not solve, having good foreground in applications. This paper introduces the development of polarization information in the remote sensing detection from the following four aspects. The rationale of polarization remote sensing detection is the base of polarization remote sensing detection, so it is firstly introduced. Secondly, the present researches on equipments that are used in polarization remote sensing detection are particularly and completely expatiated. Thirdly, the present exploration of theoretical simulation of polarization remote sensing detection is well detailed. Finally, the authors present the applications research home and abroad of the polarization remote sensing detection technique in the fields of remote sensing, atmospheric sounding, sea surface and underwater detection, biology and medical diagnosis, astronomical observation and military, summing up the current problems in polarization remote sensing detection. The development trend of polarization remote sensing detection technology in the future is pointed out in order to provide a reference for similar studies.

Active and Passive Remote Sensing of Ice

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-01-26

92 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE S. FUNDING NUMBERS Active and Passive Remote Sensing of Ice NO0014-89-J-l 107 6. AUTHOR(S) 425f023-08 Prof. J.A. Kong 7... REMOTE SENSING OF ICE Sponsored by: Department of the Navy Office of Naval Research Contract number: N00014-89-J-1107 Research Organization: Center for...J. A. Kong Period covered: October 1, 1988 - November 30, 1992 St ACTIVE AND PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING OF ICE FINAL REPORT This annual report covers

Fusion of Remote Sensing Methods, UAV Photogrammetry and LiDAR Scanning products for monitoring fluvial dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lendzioch, Theodora; Langhammer, Jakub; Hartvich, Filip

2015-04-01

Fusion of remote sensing data is a common and rapidly developing discipline, which combines data from multiple sources with different spatial and spectral resolution, from satellite sensors, aircraft and ground platforms. Fusion data contains more detailed information than each of the source and enhances the interpretation performance and accuracy of the source data and produces a high-quality visualisation of the final data. Especially, in fluvial geomorphology it is essential to get valuable images in sub-meter resolution to obtain high quality 2D and 3D information for a detailed identification, extraction and description of channel features of different river regimes and to perform a rapid mapping of changes in river topography. In order to design, test and evaluate a new approach for detection of river morphology, we combine different research techniques from remote sensing products to drone-based photogrammetry and LiDAR products (aerial LiDAR Scanner and TLS). Topographic information (e.g. changes in river channel morphology, surface roughness, evaluation of floodplain inundation, mapping gravel bars and slope characteristics) will be extracted either from one single layer or from combined layers in accordance to detect fluvial topographic changes before and after flood events. Besides statistical approaches for predictive geomorphological mapping and the determination of errors and uncertainties of the data, we will also provide 3D modelling of small fluvial features.

Remote sensing of natural resources: Quarterly literature review

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1976-01-01

A quarterly review of technical literature concerning remote sensing techniques is presented. The format contains indexed and abstracted materials with emphasis on data gathering techniques performed or obtained remotely from space, aircraft, or ground-based stations. Remote sensor applications including the remote sensing of natural resources are presented.

Future use of digital remote sensing data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spann, G. W.; Jones, N. L.

1978-01-01

Users of remote sensing data are increasingly turning to digital processing techniques for the extraction of land resource, environmental, and natural resource information. This paper presents the results of recent and ongoing research efforts sponsored, in part, by NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center on the current uses of and future needs for digital remote sensing data. An ongoing investigation involves a comprehensive survey of capabilities for digital Landsat data use in the Southeastern U.S. Another effort consists of an evaluation of future needs for digital remote sensing data by federal, state, and local governments and the private sector. These needs are projected into the 1980-1985 time frame. Furthermore, the accelerating use of digital remote sensing data is not limited to the U.S. or even to the developed countries of the world.

Linking remote sensing, land cover and disease.

PubMed

Curran, P J; Atkinson, P M; Foody, G M; Milton, E J

2000-01-01

Land cover is a critical variable in epidemiology and can be characterized remotely. A framework is used to describe both the links between land cover and radiation recorded in a remotely sensed image, and the links between land cover and the disease carried by vectors. The framework is then used to explore the issues involved when moving from remotely sensed imagery to land cover and then to vector density/disease risk. This exploration highlights the role of land cover; the need to develop a sound knowledge of each link in the predictive sequence; the problematic mismatch between the spatial units of the remotely sensed and epidemiological data and the challenges and opportunities posed by adding a temporal mismatch between the remotely sensed and epidemiological data. The paper concludes with a call for both greater understanding of the physical components of the proposed framework and the utilization of optimized statistical tools as prerequisites to progress in this field.

NASA Remote Sensing Research as Applied to Archaeology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giardino, Marco J.; Thomas, Michael R.

2002-01-01

The use of remotely sensed images is not new to archaeology. Ever since balloons and airplanes first flew cameras over archaeological sites, researchers have taken advantage of the elevated observation platforms to understand sites better. When viewed from above, crop marks, soil anomalies and buried features revealed new information that was not readily visible from ground level. Since 1974 and initially under the leadership of Dr. Tom Sever, NASA's Stennis Space Center, located on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, pioneered and expanded the application of remote sensing to archaeological topics, including cultural resource management. Building on remote sensing activities initiated by the National Park Service, archaeologists increasingly used this technology to study the past in greater depth. By the early 1980s, there were sufficient accomplishments in the application of remote sensing to anthropology and archaeology that a chapter on the subject was included in fundamental remote sensing references. Remote sensing technology and image analysis are currently undergoing a profound shift in emphasis from broad classification to detection, identification and condition of specific materials, both organic and inorganic. In the last few years, remote sensing platforms have grown increasingly capable and sophisticated. Sensors currently in use, or nearing deployment, offer significantly finer spatial and spectral resolutions than were previously available. Paired with new techniques of image analysis, this technology may make the direct detection of archaeological sites a realistic goal.

Operational Use of Remote Sensing within USDA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bethel, Glenn R.

2007-01-01

A viewgraph presentation of remote sensing imagery within the USDA is shown. USDA Aerial Photography, Digital Sensors, Hurricane imagery, Remote Sensing Sources, Satellites used by Foreign Agricultural Service, Landsat Acquisitions, and Aerial Acquisitions are also shown.

Bibliography of Remote Sensing Techniques Used in Wetland Research.

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-01-01

remote sensing technology for detecting changes in wetland environments. This report documents a bibliographic search conducted as part of that work unit on applications of remote sensing techniques in wetland research. Results were used to guide research efforts on the use of remote sensing technology for wetland change detection and assessment. The citations are presented in three appendixes, organized by wetland type, sensor type, and author.... Change detection, Wetland assessment, Remote sensing ,

Fluid Lensing and Applications to Remote Sensing of Aquatic Environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chirayath, Ved

2017-01-01

The use of fluid lensing technology on UAVs is presented as a novel means for 3D imaging of aquatic ecosystems from above the water's surface at the centimeter scale. Preliminary results are presented from airborne fluid lensing campaigns conducted over the coral reefs of Ofu Island, American Samoa (2013) and the stromatolite reefs of Shark Bay, Western Australia (2014), covering a combined area of 15km2. These reef ecosystems were revealed with centimetre-scale 2D resolution, and an accompanying 3D bathymetry model was derived using fluid lensing, Structure from Motion and UAV position data. Data products were validated from in-situ survey methods including underwater calibration targets, depth measurements and millimetre-scale high-dynamic range gigapixel photogrammetry. Fluid lensing is an experimental technology that uses water transmitting wavelengths to passively image underwater objects at high-resolution by exploiting time-varying optical lensing events caused by surface waves. Fluid lensing data are captured from low-altitude, cost-effective electric UAVs to achieve multispectral imagery and bathymetry models at the centimetre scale over regional areas. As a passive system, fluid lensing is presently limited by signal-to-noise ratio and water column inherent optical properties to approximately 10 m depth over visible wavelengths in clear waters. The datasets derived from fluid lensing present the first centimetre-scale images of a reef acquired from above the ocean surface, without wave distortion. The 3D multispectral data distinguish coral, fish and invertebrates in American Samoa, and reveal previously undocumented, morphologically distinct, stromatolite structures in Shark Bay. These findings suggest fluid lensing and multirotor electric drones represent a promising advance in the remote sensing of aquatic environments at the centimetre scale, or 'reef scale' relevant to the conservation of reef ecosystems. Pending further development and validation of

WinASEAN for remote sensing data analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duong, Nguyen Dinh; Takeuchi, Shoji

The image analysis system ASEAN (Advanced System for Environmental ANalysis with Remote Sensing Data) was designed and programmed by a software development group, ImaSOFr, Department of Remote Sensing Technology and GIS, Institute for Geography, National Centre for Natural Science and Technology of Vietnam under technical cooperation with the Remote Sensing Technology Centre of Japan and financial support from the National Space Development Agency of Japan. ASEAN has been in continuous development since 1989, with different versions ranging from the simplest one for MS-DOS with standard VGA 320×200×256 colours, through versions supporting SpeedStar 1.0 and SpeedStar PRO 2.0 true colour graphics cards, up to the latest version named WinASEAN, which is designed for the Windows 3.1 operating system. The most remarkable feature of WinASEAN is the use of algorithms that speed up the image analysis process, even on PC platforms. Today WinASEAN is continuously improved in cooperation with NASDA (National Space Development Agency of Japan), RESTEC (Remote Sensing Technology Center of Japan) and released as public domain software for training, research and education through the Regional Remote Sensing Seminar on Tropical Eco-system Management which is organised by NASDA and ESCAR In this paper, the authors describe the functionality of WinASEAN, some of the relevant analysis algorithms, and discuss its possibilities of computer-assisted teaching and training of remote sensing.

Kite Aerial Photography as a Tool for Remote Sensing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sallee, Jeff; Meier, Lesley R.

2010-01-01

As humans, we perform remote sensing nearly all the time. This is because we acquire most of our information about our surroundings through the senses of sight and hearing. Whether viewed by the unenhanced eye or a military satellite, remote sensing is observing objects from a distance. With our current technology, remote sensing has become a part…

Application of remote sensing to water resources problems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clapp, J. L.

1972-01-01

The following conclusions were reached concerning the applications of remote sensing to water resources problems: (1) Remote sensing methods provide the most practical method of obtaining data for many water resources problems; (2) the multi-disciplinary approach is essential to the effective application of remote sensing to water resource problems; (3) there is a correlation between the amount of suspended solids in an effluent discharged into a water body and reflected energy; (4) remote sensing provides for more effective and accurate monitoring, discovery and characterization of the mixing zone of effluent discharged into a receiving water body; and (5) it is possible to differentiate between blue and blue-green algae.

Physics teaching by infrared remote sensing of vegetation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schüttler, Tobias; Maman, Shimrit; Girwidz, Raimund

2018-05-01

Context- and project-based teaching has proven to foster different affective and cognitive aspects of learning. As a versatile and multidisciplinary scientific research area with diverse applications for everyday life, satellite remote sensing is an interesting context for physics education. In this paper we give a brief overview of satellite remote sensing of vegetation and how to obtain your own, individual infrared remote sensing data with affordable converted digital cameras. This novel technique provides the opportunity to conduct individual remote sensing measurement projects with students in their respective environment. The data can be compared to real satellite data and is of sufficient accuracy for educational purposes.

Land remote sensing in the 1980's

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thome, P. G.

1982-01-01

A discussion is presented concerning U.S. governmental funding policy for the Land Remote Sensing programs, in which the Landsat spacecraft and the research and development activities associated with them are essential elements. Even if present program management practices were to be changed in the next 1-2 years, the investment of significant amounts of private capital in land remote sensing may be 3-5 years away, due to the immaturity of the prospective markets for the services rendered and the present state of technological development. It is judged that even if NASA is successful in bringing significant private investment into remote sensing activities by the mid-1980s, government must continue to support basic research and expensive technology development in long term and high risk, but potentially high payoff, areas which the still-developing remote sensing industry cannot afford.

Sources of support for remote sensing education

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Estes, J. E.

1981-01-01

Past financial support for educational programs in remote sensing came largely in the form of short courses funded by the National Science Foundation. Later NASA began to fund such courses for local and state government and for some university participants in its regional programs. The greater impact came from the funding by a variety of federal agencies for remote sensing research projects at educational institutions throughout the country. Probably the best and most significant example of these programs, from the university standpoint is, and should continue to be, the NASA university affairs programs, which with its long term step funding of a number of institutions has probably done more for remote sensing education than any other federal program in this country. An incomplete listing of federal agencies that support remote sensing research at the university level is presented.

National Satellite Land Remote Sensing Data Archive

USGS Publications Warehouse

Faundeen, John L.; Kelly, Francis P.; Holm, Thomas M.; Nolt, Jenna E.

2013-01-01

The National Satellite Land Remote Sensing Data Archive (NSLRSDA) resides at the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center. Through the Land Remote Sensing Policy Act of 1992, the U.S. Congress directed the Department of the Interior (DOI) to establish a permanent Government archive containing satellite remote sensing data of the Earth's land surface and to make this data easily accessible and readily available. This unique DOI/USGS archive provides a comprehensive, permanent, and impartial observational record of the planet's land surface obtained throughout more than five decades of satellite remote sensing. Satellite-derived data and information products are primary sources used to detect and understand changes such as deforestation, desertification, agricultural crop vigor, water quality, invasive plant species, and certain natural hazards such as flood extent and wildfire scars.

Remote sensing research in geographic education: An alternative view

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilson, H.; Cary, T. K.; Goward, S. N.

1981-01-01

It is noted that within many geography departments remote sensing is viewed as a mere technique a student should learn in order to carry out true geographic research. This view inhibits both students and faculty from investigation of remotely sensed data as a new source of geographic knowledge that may alter our understanding of the Earth. The tendency is for geographers to accept these new data and analysis techniques from engineers and mathematicians without questioning the accompanying premises. This black-box approach hinders geographic applications of the new remotely sensed data and limits the geographer's contribution to further development of remote sensing observation systems. It is suggested that geographers contribute to the development of remote sensing through pursuit of basic research. This research can be encouraged, particularly among students, by demonstrating the links between geographic theory and remotely sensed observations, encouraging a healthy skepticism concerning the current understanding of these data.

Satellite Remote Sensing of Aerosol Forcing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Remer, Lorraine; Kaufman, Yoram; Ramaprasad, Jaya; Procopio, Aline; Levin, Zev

1999-01-01

Aerosol and cloud impacts on the earth's climate become a recent hot topic in climate studies. Having near future earth observing satellites, EOS-AM1 (Earth Observing System-AM1), ENVISAT (Environmental Satellites) and ADEOS-2 (Advanced Earth Observation Satellite-2), it will be a good timing to discuss how to obtain and use the microphysical parameters of aerosols and clouds for studying their climate impacts. Center for Climate System Research (CCSR) of the University of Tokyo invites you to 'Symposium on synergy between satellite-remote sensing and climate modeling in aerosol and cloud issues.' Here, we like to discuss the current and future issues in the remote sensing of aerosol and cloud microphysical parameters and their climate modeling studies. This workshop is also one of workshop series on aerosol remote sensing held in 1996, Washington D. C., and Meribel, France in 1999. It should be reminded that NASDA/ADEOS-1 & -2 (National Space Development Agency of Japan/Advanced Earth Observation Satellite-1 & -2) Workshop will be held in the following week (Dec. 6-10, 1999), so that this opportunity will be a perfect period for you to attend two meetings for satellite remote sensing in Japan. A weekend in Kyoto, the old capital of Japan, will add a nice memory to your visiting Japan. *Issues in the symposium: 1) most recent topics in aerosol and cloud remot sensing, and 2) utility of satellite products on climate modeling of cloud-aerosol effects.

Multi-scale remote sensing of coral reefs

USGS Publications Warehouse

Andréfouët, Serge; Hochberg, E.J.; Chevillon, Christophe; Muller-Karger, Frank E.; Brock, John C.; Hu, Chuanmin

2005-01-01

In this chapter we present how both direct and indirect remote sensing can be integrated to address two major coral reef applications - coral bleaching and assessment of biodiversity. This approach reflects the current non-linear integration of remote sensing for environmental assessment of coral reefs, resulting from a rapid increase in available sensors, processing methods and interdisciplinary collaborations (Andréfouët and Riegl, 2004). Moreover, this approach has greatly benefited from recent collaborations of once independent investigations (e.g., benthic ecology, remote sensing, and numerical modeling).

Reflections on Earth--Remote-Sensing Research from Your Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campbell, Bruce A.

2001-01-01

Points out the uses of remote sensing in different areas, and introduces the program "Reflections on Earth" which provides access to basic and instructional information on remote sensing to students and teachers. Introduces students to concepts related to remote sensing and measuring distances. (YDS)

History and future of remote sensing technology and education

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Colwell, R. N.

1980-01-01

A historical overview of the discovery and development of photography, related sciences, and remote sensing technology is presented. The role of education to date in the development of remote sensing is discussed. The probable future and potential of remote sensing and training is described.

UAV Flight Control Using Distributed Actuation and Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barnwell, William G.; Heinzen, Stearns N.; Hall, Charles E., Jr.; Chokani, Ndaona; Raney, David L. (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

An array of effectors and sensors has been designed, tested and implemented on a Blended Wing Body Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV). This UAV is modified to serve as a flying, controls research, testbed. This effectorhensor array provides for the dynamic vehicle testing of controller designs and the study of decentralized control techniques. Each wing of the UAV is equipped with 12 distributed effectors that comprise a segmented array of independently actuated, contoured control surfaces. A single pressure sensor is installed near the base of each effector to provide a measure of deflections of the effectors. The UAV wings were tested in the North Carolina State University Subsonic Wind Tunnel and the pressure distribution that result from the deflections of the effectors are characterized. The results of the experiments are used to develop a simple, but accurate, prediction method, such that for any arrangement of the effector array the corresponding pressure distribution can be determined. Numerical analysis using the panel code CMARC verifies this prediction method.

Remote sensing for vineyard management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Philipson, W. R.; Erb, T. L.; Fernandez, D.; Mcleester, J. N.

1980-01-01

Cornell's Remote Sensing Program has been involved in a continuing investigation to assess the value of remote sensing for vineyard management. Program staff members have conducted a series of site and crop analysis studies. These include: (1) panchromatic aerial photography for planning artificial drainage in a new vineyard; (2) color infrared aerial photography for assessing crop vigor/health; and (3) color infrared aerial photography and aircraft multispectral scanner data for evaluating yield related factors. These studies and their findings are reviewed.

Remote Marker-Based Tracking for UAV Landing Using Visible-Light Camera Sensor.

PubMed

Nguyen, Phong Ha; Kim, Ki Wan; Lee, Young Won; Park, Kang Ryoung

2017-08-30

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which are commonly known as drones, have proved to be useful not only on the battlefields where manned flight is considered too risky or difficult, but also in everyday life purposes such as surveillance, monitoring, rescue, unmanned cargo, aerial video, and photography. More advanced drones make use of global positioning system (GPS) receivers during the navigation and control loop which allows for smart GPS features of drone navigation. However, there are problems if the drones operate in heterogeneous areas with no GPS signal, so it is important to perform research into the development of UAVs with autonomous navigation and landing guidance using computer vision. In this research, we determined how to safely land a drone in the absence of GPS signals using our remote maker-based tracking algorithm based on the visible light camera sensor. The proposed method uses a unique marker designed as a tracking target during landing procedures. Experimental results show that our method significantly outperforms state-of-the-art object trackers in terms of both accuracy and processing time, and we perform test on an embedded system in various environments.

Remote Marker-Based Tracking for UAV Landing Using Visible-Light Camera Sensor

PubMed Central

Nguyen, Phong Ha; Kim, Ki Wan; Lee, Young Won; Park, Kang Ryoung

2017-01-01

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which are commonly known as drones, have proved to be useful not only on the battlefields where manned flight is considered too risky or difficult, but also in everyday life purposes such as surveillance, monitoring, rescue, unmanned cargo, aerial video, and photography. More advanced drones make use of global positioning system (GPS) receivers during the navigation and control loop which allows for smart GPS features of drone navigation. However, there are problems if the drones operate in heterogeneous areas with no GPS signal, so it is important to perform research into the development of UAVs with autonomous navigation and landing guidance using computer vision. In this research, we determined how to safely land a drone in the absence of GPS signals using our remote maker-based tracking algorithm based on the visible light camera sensor. The proposed method uses a unique marker designed as a tracking target during landing procedures. Experimental results show that our method significantly outperforms state-of-the-art object trackers in terms of both accuracy and processing time, and we perform test on an embedded system in various environments. PMID:28867775

Remote Sensing for Tropical Forest Assessment

Treesearch

AJR Gillespie

1994-01-01

The purpose of this workshop was to allow remote sensing experts from Latin America, the U.S.A., and FAO to discuss state-of-the-art methodology in remote sensing of forest environments, and to develop plans on how to better incorporate this technology into FAO and national forest inventory efforts. The workshop included numerous presentations of ongoing activities, as...

SYMPOSIUM ON REMOTE SENSING IN THE POLAR REGIONS

DTIC Science & Technology

The Arctic Institute of North America long has been interested in encouraging full and specific attention to applications of remote sensing to polar...research problems. The major purpose of the symposium was to acquaint scientists and technicians concerned with remote sensing with some of the...special problems of the polar areas and, in turn, to acquaint polar scientists with the potential of the use of remote sensing . The Symposium therefore was

Wildlife Multispecies Remote Sensing Using Visible and Thermal Infrared Imagery Acquired from AN Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (uav)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chrétien, L.-P.; Théau, J.; Ménard, P.

2015-08-01

Wildlife aerial surveys require time and significant resources. Multispecies detection could reduce costs to a single census for species that coexist spatially. Traditional methods are demanding for observers in terms of concentration and are not adapted to multispecies censuses. The processing of multispectral aerial imagery acquired from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) represents a potential solution for multispecies detection. The method used in this study is based on a multicriteria object-based image analysis applied on visible and thermal infrared imagery acquired from a UAV. This project aimed to detect American bison, fallow deer, gray wolves, and elks located in separate enclosures with a known number of individuals. Results showed that all bison and elks were detected without errors, while for deer and wolves, 0-2 individuals per flight line were mistaken with ground elements or undetected. This approach also detected simultaneously and separately the four targeted species even in the presence of other untargeted ones. These results confirm the potential of multispectral imagery acquired from UAV for wildlife census. Its operational application remains limited to small areas related to the current regulations and available technology. Standardization of the workflow will help to reduce time and expertise requirements for such technology.

Using GPS Reflections for Satellite Remote Sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mickler, David

2000-01-01

GPS signals that have reflected off of the ocean's surface have shown potential for use in oceanographic and atmospheric studies. The research described here investigates the possible deployment of a GPS reflection receiver onboard a remote sensing satellite in low Earth orbit (LEO). The coverage and resolution characteristics of this receiver are calculated and estimated. This mission analysis examines using reflected GPS signals for several remote sensing missions. These include measurement of the total electron content in the ionosphere, sea surface height, and ocean wind speed and direction. Also discussed is the potential test deployment of such a GPS receiver on the space shuttle. Constellations of satellites are proposed to provide adequate spatial and temporal resolution for the aforementioned remote sensing missions. These results provide a starting point for research into the feasibility of augmenting or replacing existing remote sensing satellites with spaceborne GPS reflection-detecting receivers.

DARLA: Data Assimilation and Remote Sensing for Littoral Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jessup, A.; Holman, R. A.; Chickadel, C.; Elgar, S.; Farquharson, G.; Haller, M. C.; Kurapov, A. L.; Özkan-Haller, H. T.; Raubenheimer, B.; Thomson, J. M.

2012-12-01

DARLA is 5-year collaborative project that couples state-of-the-art remote sensing and in situ measurements with advanced data assimilation (DA) modeling to (a) evaluate and improve remote sensing retrieval algorithms for environmental parameters, (b) determine the extent to which remote sensing data can be used in place of in situ data in models, and (c) infer bathymetry for littoral environments by combining remotely-sensed parameters and data assimilation models. The project uses microwave, electro-optical, and infrared techniques to characterize the littoral ocean with a focus on wave and current parameters required for DA modeling. In conjunction with the RIVET (River and Inlets) Project, extensive in situ measurements provide ground truth for both the remote sensing retrieval algorithms and the DA modeling. Our goal is to use remote sensing to constrain data assimilation models of wave and circulation dynamics in a tidal inlet and surrounding beaches. We seek to improve environmental parameter estimation via remote sensing fusion, determine the success of using remote sensing data to drive DA models, and produce a dynamically consistent representation of the wave, circulation, and bathymetry fields in complex environments. The objectives are to test the following three hypotheses: 1. Environmental parameter estimation using remote sensing techniques can be significantly improved by fusion of multiple sensor products. 2. Data assimilation models can be adequately constrained (i.e., forced or guided) with environmental parameters derived from remote sensing measurements. 3. Bathymetry on open beaches, river mouths, and at tidal inlets can be inferred from a combination of remotely-sensed parameters and data assimilation models. Our approach is to conduct a series of field experiments combining remote sensing and in situ measurements to investigate signature physics and to gather data for developing and testing DA models. A preliminary experiment conducted at

Online catalog access and distribution of remotely sensed information

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lutton, Stephen M.

1997-09-01

Remote sensing is providing voluminous data and value added information products. Electronic sensors, communication electronics, computer software, hardware, and network communications technology have matured to the point where a distributed infrastructure for remotely sensed information is a reality. The amount of remotely sensed data and information is making distributed infrastructure almost a necessity. This infrastructure provides data collection, archiving, cataloging, browsing, processing, and viewing for applications from scientific research to economic, legal, and national security decision making. The remote sensing field is entering a new exciting stage of commercial growth and expansion into the mainstream of government and business decision making. This paper overviews this new distributed infrastructure and then focuses on describing a software system for on-line catalog access and distribution of remotely sensed information.

Remote Sensing as a Demonstration of Applied Physics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colwell, Robert N.

1980-01-01

Provides information about the field of remote sensing, including discussions of geo-synchronous and sun-synchronous remote-sensing platforms, the actual physical processes and equipment involved in sensing, the analysis of images by humans and machines, and inexpensive, small scale methods, including aerial photography. (CS)

Remote sensing in operational range management programs in Western Canada

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thompson, M. D.

1977-01-01

A pilot program carried out in Western Canada to test remote sensing under semi-operational conditions and display its applicability to operational range management programs was described. Four agencies were involved in the program, two in Alberta and two in Manitoba. Each had different objectives and needs for remote sensing within its range management programs, and each was generally unfamiliar with remote sensing techniques and their applications. Personnel with experience and expertise in the remote sensing and range management fields worked with the agency personnel through every phase of the pilot program. Results indicate that these agencies have found remote sensing to be a cost effective tool and will begin to utilize remote sensing in their operational work during ensuing seasons.

Remote sensing and reflectance profiling in entomology

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Remote sensing is about characterizing the status of objects and/or classifies their identity based on a combination of spectral features extracted from reflectance or transmission profiles of radiometric energy. Remote sensing can be ground-based, and therefore acquired at a high spatial resolutio...

Planning and Implementation of Remote Sensing Experiments.

DTIC Science & Technology

Contents: TEKTITE II experiment-upwelling detection (NASA Mx 138); Design of oceanographic experiments (Gulf of Mexico, Mx 159); Design of oceanographic experiments (Gulf of Mexico, Mx 165); Experiments on thermal pollution; Remote sensing newsletter; Symposium on remote sensing in marine biology and fishery resources.

Current NASA Earth Remote Sensing Observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luvall, Jeffrey C.; Sprigg, William A.; Huete, Alfredo; Pejanovic, Goran; Nickovic, Slobodan; Ponce-Campos, Guillermo; Krapfl, Heide; Budge, Amy; Zelicoff, Alan; Myers, Orrin;

Accuracy Dimensions in Remote Sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barsi, Á.; Kugler, Zs.; László, I.; Szabó, Gy.; Abdulmutalib, H. M.

2018-04-01

The technological developments in remote sensing (RS) during the past decade has contributed to a significant increase in the size of data user community. For this reason data quality issues in remote sensing face a significant increase in importance, particularly in the era of Big Earth data. Dozens of available sensors, hundreds of sophisticated data processing techniques, countless software tools assist the processing of RS data and contributes to a major increase in applications and users. In the past decades, scientific and technological community of spatial data environment were focusing on the evaluation of data quality elements computed for point, line, area geometry of vector and raster data. Stakeholders of data production commonly use standardised parameters to characterise the quality of their datasets. Yet their efforts to estimate the quality did not reach the general end-user community running heterogeneous applications who assume that their spatial data is error-free and best fitted to the specification standards. The non-specialist, general user group has very limited knowledge how spatial data meets their needs. These parameters forming the external quality dimensions implies that the same data system can be of different quality to different users. The large collection of the observed information is uncertain in a level that can decry the reliability of the applications. Based on prior paper of the authors (in cooperation within the Remote Sensing Data Quality working group of ISPRS), which established a taxonomy on the dimensions of data quality in GIS and remote sensing domains, this paper is aiming at focusing on measures of uncertainty in remote sensing data lifecycle, focusing on land cover mapping issues. In the paper we try to introduce how quality of the various combination of data and procedures can be summarized and how services fit the users' needs. The present paper gives the theoretic overview of the issue, besides selected, practice

What does remote sensing do for ecology?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roughgarden, J.; Running, S. W.; Matson, P. A.

1991-01-01

The application of remote sensing to ecological investigations is briefly discussed. Emphasis is given to the recruitment problem in marine population dynamics, the regional analysis of terrestrial ecosystems, and the monitoring of ecological changes. Impediments to the use of remote sensing data in ecology are addressed.

Accommodating Student Diversity in Remote Sensing Instruction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hammen, John L., III.

1992-01-01

Discusses the difficulty of teaching computer-based remote sensing to students of varying levels of computer literacy. Suggests an instructional method that accommodates all levels of technical expertise through the use of microcomputers. Presents a curriculum that includes an introduction to remote sensing, digital image processing, and…

Western Regional Remote Sensing Conference Proceedings, 1981

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1981-01-01

Diverse applications of LANDSAT data, problem solutions, and operational goals are described by remote sensing users from 14 western states. The proposed FY82 federal budget reductions for technology transfer activities and the planned transition of the operational remote sensing system to NOAA's supervision are also considered.

Polarimetric Remote Sensing of Atmospheric Particulate Pollutants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Z.; Zhang, Y.; Hong, J.

2018-04-01

Atmospheric particulate pollutants not only reduce atmospheric visibility, change the energy balance of the troposphere, but also affect human and vegetation health. For monitoring the particulate pollutants, we establish and develop a series of inversion algorithms based on polarimetric remote sensing technology which has unique advantages in dealing with atmospheric particulates. A solution is pointed out to estimate the near surface PM2.5 mass concentrations from full remote sensing measurements including polarimetric, active and infrared remote sensing technologies. It is found that the mean relative error of PM2.5 retrieved by full remote sensing measurements is 35.5 % in the case of October 5th 2013, improved to a certain degree compared to previous studies. A systematic comparison with the ground-based observations further indicates the effectiveness of the inversion algorithm and reliability of results. A new generation of polarized sensors (DPC and PCF), whose observation can support these algorithms, will be onboard GF series satellites and launched by China in the near future.

NASA's Applied Remote Sensing Training (ARSET) Webinar Series

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2016-07-12

NASA's Applied Remote Sensing Training (ARSET) Webinar Series Tuesday, July 12, 2016 ... you of a free training opportunity: Introduction to Remote Sensing for Air Quality Applications Webinar Series Beginning in ...

Advanced Doppler radar physiological sensing technique for drone detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yoon, Ji Hwan; Xu, Hao; Garcia Carrillo, Luis R.

2017-05-01

A 24 GHz medium-range human detecting sensor, using the Doppler Radar Physiological Sensing (DRPS) technique, which can also detect unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones), is currently under development for potential rescue and anti-drone applications. DRPS systems are specifically designed to remotely monitor small movements of non-metallic human tissues such as cardiopulmonary activity and respiration. Once optimized, the unique capabilities of DRPS could be used to detect UAVs. Initial measurements have shown that DRPS technology is able to detect moving and stationary humans, as well as largely non-metallic multi-rotor drone helicopters. Further data processing will incorporate pattern recognition to detect multiple signatures (motor vibration and hovering patterns) of UAVs.

Annotated bibliography of remote sensing methods for monitoring desertification

USGS Publications Warehouse

Walker, A.S.; Robinove, Charles J.

1981-01-01

Remote sensing techniques are valuable for locating, assessing, and monitoring desertification. Remotely sensed data provide a permanent record of the condition of the land in a format that allows changes in land features and condition to be measured. The annotated bibliography of 118 items discusses remote sensing methods that may be applied to desertification studies.

UAV Remote Sensing Can Reveal the Effects of Low-Impact Seismic Lines on Surface Morphology, Hydrology, and Methane (CH4) Release in a Boreal Treed Bog

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lovitt, J.; Rahman, M. M.; Saraswati, S.; McDermid, G. J.; Strack, M.; Xu, B.

2018-03-01

Peatlands are globally significant stores of soil carbon, where local methane (CH4) emissions are strongly linked to water table position and microtopography. Historically, these factors have been difficult to measure in the field, constraining our capacity to observe local patterns of variability. In this paper, we show how remote sensing surveys conducted from unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platforms can be used to map microtopography and depth to water over large areas with good accuracy, paving the way for spatially explicit estimates of CH4 emissions. This approach enabled us to observe—for the first time—the effects of low-impact seismic lines (LIS; petroleum exploration corridors) on surface morphology and CH4 emissions in a treed-bog ecosystem in northern Alberta, Canada. Through compaction, LIS lines were found to flatten the observed range in microtopographic elevation by 46 cm and decrease mean depth to water by 15.4 cm, compared to surrounding undisturbed conditions. These alterations are projected to increase CH4 emissions by 20-120% relative to undisturbed areas in our study area, which translates to a total rise of 0.011-0.027 kg CH4 day-1 per linear kilometer of LIS ( 2 m wide). The 16 km of LIS present at our 61 ha study site were predicted to boost CH4 emissions by 20-70 kg between May and September 2016.

Remote sensing and earthquake risk: A (re)insurance perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smolka, Anselm; Siebert, Andreas

2013-04-01

. Non-structural damage is invisible in airborne surveys, and this also applies to the majority of so-called constructive total losses in liquefied areas, including the Central Business District in Christchurch. Nonetheless, aerial and satellite photos have been of great assistance in mapping out the areas affected by liquefaction in Christchurch and by the tsunami in Tohoku/Japan, and in this respect provided useful hints regarding the extent of heavily damaged areas. But to unfold their full potential, traditional airborne surveys must be supplemented by efficient ground-based surveys supported by mobile terrestrial vehicles, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and random sample on-site inspections. The situation is similar with regard to compiling inventories of buildings. To achieve a realistic building typology, seismic vulnerability classification and occupancy classes, satellite data must be supported by field surveys, additional geospatial datasets and on-site engineering know-how. Here, 3D LIDAR-based city models are also a promising additional means of improving the overall risk assessment by supplying more geometrical parameters (e.g. plan, height and number of storeys). Finally, high-resolution imagery still provides excellent "background" information for improved risk transparency within the risk dialogue with industry and public authorities. Even more difficult is another problem which is specifically related to insurance practice. Depending on the country and the region concerned, only a variable fraction of exposed objects (and losses) is insured, so how can the overall information on inventories and losses be correlated to the insured portion? Except for areas with very high insurance penetration, any technique based on remote sensing has reached its limit of applicability.

The U.S. Geological Survey land remote sensing program

USGS Publications Warehouse

Saunders, T.; Feuquay, J.; Kelmelis, J.A.

2003-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey has been a provider of remotely sensed information for decades. As the availability and use of satellite data has grown, USGS has placed increasing emphasis on expanding the knowledge about the science of remote sensing and on making remotely sensed data more accessible. USGS encourages widespread availability and distribution of these data and through its programs, encourages and enables a variety of research activities and the development of useful applications of the data. The science of remote sensing has great potential for assisting in the monitoring and assessment of the impacts of natural disasters, management and analysis of environmental, biological, energy, and mineral investigations, and supporting informed public policy decisions. By establishing the Land Remote Sensing Program (LRS) as a major unit of the USGS Geography Program, USGS has taken the next step to further increase support for the accessibility, understanding, and use of remotely sensed data. This article describes the LRS Program, its mission and objectives, and how the program has been structured to accomplish its goals.

Secure distribution for high resolution remote sensing images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Jin; Sun, Jing; Xu, Zheng Q.

2010-09-01

The use of remote sensing images collected by space platforms is becoming more and more widespread. The increasing value of space data and its use in critical scenarios call for adoption of proper security measures to protect these data against unauthorized access and fraudulent use. In this paper, based on the characteristics of remote sensing image data and application requirements on secure distribution, a secure distribution method is proposed, including users and regions classification, hierarchical control and keys generation, and multi-level encryption based on regions. The combination of the three parts can make that the same remote sensing images after multi-level encryption processing are distributed to different permission users through multicast, but different permission users can obtain different degree information after decryption through their own decryption keys. It well meets user access control and security needs in the process of high resolution remote sensing image distribution. The experimental results prove the effectiveness of the proposed method which is suitable for practical use in the secure transmission of remote sensing images including confidential information over internet.

Remote sensing terminology: past experience and recent needs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kancheva, Rumiana

2013-10-01

Terminology is a key issue for a better understanding among people using various languages. Terminology accuracy is essential during all phases of international cooperation. It is crucial to keep up with the latest quantitative and qualitative developments and novelties of the terminology in advanced technology fields such as aerospace science and industry. This is especially true in remote sensing and geoinformatics which develop rapidly and have wide and ever extending applications in various domains of human activity. The importance of the correct use of remote sensing terms refers not only to people working in this field but also to experts in many disciplines who handle remote sensing data and information products. The paper is devoted to terminology issues that refer to all aspects of remote sensing research and application areas. The attention is drawn on the recent needs and peculiarities of compiling specialized dictionaries in the subject area of remote sensing. Details are presented about the work in progress on the preparation of an English-Bulgarian dictionary of remote sensing terms focusing on Earth observations and geoinformation science. Our belief is that the elaboration of bilingual and multilingual dictionaries and glossaries in this spreading, most technically advanced and promising field of human expertise is of great practical importance. Any interest in cooperation and initiating of suchlike collaborative multilingual projects is welcome and highly appreciated.

Prediction of health levels by remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rush, M.; Vernon, S.

1975-01-01

Measures of the environment derived from remote sensing were compared to census population/housing measures in their ability to discriminate among health status areas in two urban communities. Three hypotheses were developed to explore the relationships between environmental and health data. Univariate and multiple step-wise linear regression analyses were performed on data from two sample areas in Houston and Galveston, Texas. Environmental data gathered by remote sensing were found to equal or surpass census data in predicting rates of health outcomes. Remote sensing offers the advantages of data collection for any chosen area or time interval, flexibilities not allowed by the decennial census.

The availability of conventional forms of remotely sensed data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sturdevant, James A.; Holm, Thomas M.

1982-01-01

For decades Federal and State agencies have been collecting aerial photographs of various film types and scales over parts of the United States. More recently, worldwide Earth resources data acquired by orbiting satellites have inundated the remote sensing community. Determining the types of remotely sensed data that are publicly available can be confusing to the land-resource manager, planner, and scientist. This paper is a summary of the more commonly used types of remotely sensed data (aircraft and satellite) and their public availability. Special emphasis is placed on the National High-Altitude Photography (NHAP) program and future remote-sensing satellites.

Conference of Remote Sensing Educators (CORSE-78)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1978-01-01

Ways of improving the teaching of remote sensing students at colleges and universities are discussed. Formal papers and workshops on various Earth resources disciplines, image interpretation, and data processing concepts are presented. An inventory of existing remote sensing and related subject courses being given in western regional universities is included.

Active and Passive Remote Sensing of Ice.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-09-01

This is a report on the progress that has been made in the study of active and passive remote sensing of ice during the period of February 1, 1984...the emissivities as functions of viewing angles and polarizations. They are used to interpret the passive microwave remote sensing data from

Active and Passive Remote Sensing of Ice.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-01-01

This is a report on the progress that has been made in the study of active and passive remote sensing of ice during the period of August 1, 1984...active and passive microwave remote sensing , (2) used the strong fluctuation theory and the fluctuation-dissipation theorem to calculate the brightness

Object-oriented recognition of high-resolution remote sensing image

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yongyan; Li, Haitao; Chen, Hong; Xu, Yuannan

2016-01-01

With the development of remote sensing imaging technology and the improvement of multi-source image's resolution in satellite visible light, multi-spectral and hyper spectral , the high resolution remote sensing image has been widely used in various fields, for example military field, surveying and mapping, geophysical prospecting, environment and so forth. In remote sensing image, the segmentation of ground targets, feature extraction and the technology of automatic recognition are the hotspot and difficulty in the research of modern information technology. This paper also presents an object-oriented remote sensing image scene classification method. The method is consist of vehicles typical objects classification generation, nonparametric density estimation theory, mean shift segmentation theory, multi-scale corner detection algorithm, local shape matching algorithm based on template. Remote sensing vehicles image classification software system is designed and implemented to meet the requirements .

Remote hydrogen sensing techniques

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perry, Cortes L.

1992-01-01

The objective of this project is to evaluate remote hydrogen sensing methodologies utilizing metal oxide semi-conductor field effect transistors (MOS-FET) and mass spectrometric (MS) technologies and combinations thereof.

Remote sensing of plant functional types.

PubMed

Ustin, Susan L; Gamon, John A

2010-06-01

Conceptually, plant functional types represent a classification scheme between species and broad vegetation types. Historically, these were based on physiological, structural and/or phenological properties, whereas recently, they have reflected plant responses to resources or environmental conditions. Often, an underlying assumption, based on an economic analogy, is that the functional role of vegetation can be identified by linked sets of morphological and physiological traits constrained by resources, based on the hypothesis of functional convergence. Using these concepts, ecologists have defined a variety of functional traits that are often context dependent, and the diversity of proposed traits demonstrates the lack of agreement on universal categories. Historically, remotely sensed data have been interpreted in ways that parallel these observations, often focused on the categorization of vegetation into discrete types, often dependent on the sampling scale. At the same time, current thinking in both ecology and remote sensing has moved towards viewing vegetation as a continuum rather than as discrete classes. The capabilities of new remote sensing instruments have led us to propose a new concept of optically distinguishable functional types ('optical types') as a unique way to address the scale dependence of this problem. This would ensure more direct relationships between ecological information and remote sensing observations.

Remote Sensing Information Science Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clarke, Keith C.; Scepan, Joseph; Hemphill, Jeffrey; Herold, Martin; Husak, Gregory; Kline, Karen; Knight, Kevin

2002-01-01

This document is the final report summarizing research conducted by the Remote Sensing Research Unit, Department of Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara under National Aeronautics and Space Administration Research Grant NAG5-10457. This document describes work performed during the period of 1 March 2001 thorough 30 September 2002. This report includes a survey of research proposed and performed within RSRU and the UCSB Geography Department during the past 25 years. A broad suite of RSRU research conducted under NAG5-10457 is also described under themes of Applied Research Activities and Information Science Research. This research includes: 1. NASA ESA Research Grant Performance Metrics Reporting. 2. Global Data Set Thematic Accuracy Analysis. 3. ISCGM/Global Map Project Support. 4. Cooperative International Activities. 5. User Model Study of Global Environmental Data Sets. 6. Global Spatial Data Infrastructure. 7. CIESIN Collaboration. 8. On the Value of Coordinating Landsat Operations. 10. The California Marine Protected Areas Database: Compilation and Accuracy Issues. 11. Assessing Landslide Hazard Over a 130-Year Period for La Conchita, California Remote Sensing and Spatial Metrics for Applied Urban Area Analysis, including: (1) IKONOS Data Processing for Urban Analysis. (2) Image Segmentation and Object Oriented Classification. (3) Spectral Properties of Urban Materials. (4) Spatial Scale in Urban Mapping. (5) Variable Scale Spatial and Temporal Urban Growth Signatures. (6) Interpretation and Verification of SLEUTH Modeling Results. (7) Spatial Land Cover Pattern Analysis for Representing Urban Land Use and Socioeconomic Structures. 12. Colorado River Flood Plain Remote Sensing Study Support. 13. African Rainfall Modeling and Assessment. 14. Remote Sensing and GIS Integration.

Remote sensing for detecting and mapping whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) infestations

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Remote sensing technology has long been used for detecting insect infestations on agricultural crops. With recent advances in remote sensing sensors and other spatial information technologies such as Global Position Systems (GPS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing is finding mo...

Coastal Remote Sensing Investigations. Volume 2. Beach Environment

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-12-01

1 ’ "■"’.."■•■.» ■ a .1 "llpll CO Ifi o Q- O CO I y Final Report COASTAL REMOTE SENSING INVESTIGATIONS VOLUME 2: BEACH... Remote Sensing Grain Size Soil Moisture Soil Mineralogy Multispectral Scanner iO AUTNACT fCHtfÜBB on merit nJt ij ntinwin and idmlify In hloti...The work reported herein summarizes the final research activity in the Beach Environment Task of a program at ERIM entitled "Coastal Remote Sensing Investigations

Remote sensing programs and courses in engineering and water resources

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kiefer, R. W.

1981-01-01

The content of typical basic and advanced remote sensing and image interpretation courses are described and typical remote sensing graduate programs of study in civil engineering and in interdisciplinary environmental remote sensing and water resources management programs are outlined. Ideally, graduate programs with an emphasis on remote sensing and image interpretation should be built around a core of five courses: (1) a basic course in fundamentals of remote sensing upon which the more specialized advanced remote sensing courses can build; (2) a course dealing with visual image interpretation; (3) a course dealing with quantitative (computer-based) image interpretation; (4) a basic photogrammetry course; and (5) a basic surveying course. These five courses comprise up to one-half of the course work required for the M.S. degree. The nature of other course work and thesis requirements vary greatly, depending on the department in which the degree is being awarded.

The U.S. Geological Survey Land Remote Sensing Program

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

2003-01-01

In 2002, the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) launched a program to enhance the acquisition, preservation, and use of remotely sensed data for USGS science programs, as well as for those of cooperators and customers. Remotely sensed data are fundamental tools for studying the Earth's land surface, including coastal and near-shore environments. For many decades, the USGS has been a leader in providing remotely sensed data to the national and international communities. Acting on its historical topographic mapping mission, the USGS has archived and distributed aerial photographs of the United States for more than half a century. Since 1972, the USGS has acquired, processed, archived, and distributed Landsat and other satellite and airborne remotely sensed data products to users worldwide. Today, the USGS operates and manages the Landsats 5 and 7 missions and cooperates with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to define and implement future satellite missions that will continue and expand the collection of moderate-resolution remotely sensed data. In addition to being a provider of remotely sensed data, the USGS is a user of these data and related remote sensing technology. These data are used in natural resource evaluations for energy and minerals, coastal environmental surveys, assessments of natural hazards (earthquakes, volcanoes, and landslides), biological surveys and investigations, water resources status and trends analyses and studies, and geographic and cartographic applications, such as wildfire detection and tracking and as a source of information for The National Map. The program furthers these distinct but related roles by leading the USGS activities in providing remotely sensed data while advancing applications of such data for USGS programs and a wider user community.

Needs and emerging trends of remote sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McNair, Michael

2014-06-01

From the earliest need to be able to see an enemy over a hill to sending semi-autonomous platforms with advanced sensor packages out into space, humans have wanted to know more about what is around them. Issues of distance are being minimized through advances in technology to the point where remote control of a sensor is useful but sensing by way of a non-collocated sensor is better. We are not content to just sense what is physically nearby. However, it is not always practical or possible to move sensors to an area of interest; we must be able to sense at a distance. This requires not only new technologies but new approaches; our need to sense at a distance is ever changing with newer challenges. As a result, remote sensing is not limited to relocating a sensor but is expanded into possibly deducing or inferring from available information. Sensing at a distance is the heart of remote sensing. Much of the sensing technology today is focused on analysis of electromagnetic radiation and sound. While these are important and the most mature areas of sensing, this paper seeks to identify future sensing possibilities by looking beyond light and sound. By drawing a parallel to the five human senses, we can then identify the existing and some of the future possibilities. A further narrowing of the field of sensing causes us to look specifically at robotic sensing. It is here that this paper will be directed.

Natural Resource Information System. Remote Sensing Studies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leachtenauer, J.; And Others

A major design objective of the Natural Resource Information System entailed the use of remote sensing data as an input to the system. Potential applications of remote sensing data were therefore reviewed and available imagery interpreted to provide input to a demonstration data base. A literature review was conducted to determine the types and…

Project THEMIS: A Center for Remote Sensing.

DTIC Science & Technology

This report summarizes the technical work accomplished under Project THEMIS, A Center for Remote Sensing at the University of Kansas during the...period 16 September 1967 through 15 September 1973. The highlights of the four major areas forming the remote sensing system are presented. A detailed description of the latest radar spectrometer results is presented.

Field Data Collection: an Essential Element in Remote Sensing Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pettinger, L. R.

1971-01-01

Field data collected in support of remote sensing projects are generally used for the following purposes: (1) calibration of remote sensing systems, (2) evaluation of experimental applications of remote sensing imagery on small test sites, and (3) designing and evaluating operational regional resource studies and inventories which are conducted using the remote sensing imagery obtained. Field data may be used to help develop a technique for a particular application, or to aid in the application of that technique to a resource evaluation or inventory problem for a large area. Scientists at the Forestry Remote Sensing Laboratory have utilized field data for both purposes. How meaningful field data has been collected in each case is discussed.

Remote sensing and eLearning 2.0 for school education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voss, Kerstin; Goetzke, Roland; Hodam, Henryk

2010-10-01

The "Remote Sensing in Schools" project aims at improving the integration of "Satellite remote sensing" into school teaching. Therefore, it is the project's overall objective to teach students in primary and secondary schools the basics and fields of application of remote sensing. Existing results show that many teachers are interested in remote sensing and at same time motivated to integrate it into their teaching. Despite the good intention, in the end, the implementation often fails due to the complexity and poor set-up of the information provided. Therefore, a comprehensive and well-structured learning platform on the topic of remote sensing is developed. The platform shall allow a structured introduction to the topic.

System and method for evaluating wind flow fields using remote sensing devices

DOEpatents

Schroeder, John; Hirth, Brian; Guynes, Jerry

2016-12-13

The present invention provides a system and method for obtaining data to determine one or more characteristics of a wind field using a first remote sensing device and a second remote sensing device. Coordinated data is collected from the first and second remote sensing devices and analyzed to determine the one or more characteristics of the wind field. The first remote sensing device is positioned to have a portion of the wind field within a first scanning sector of the first remote sensing device. The second remote sensing device is positioned to have the portion of the wind field disposed within a second scanning sector of the second remote sensing device.

Geological remote sensing signatures of terrestrial impact craters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garvin, J. B.; Schnetzler, C.; Grieve, R. A. F.

1988-01-01

Geological remote sensing techniques can be used to investigate structural, depositional, and shock metamorphic effects associated with hypervelocity impact structures, some of which may be linked to global Earth system catastrophies. Although detailed laboratory and field investigations are necessary to establish conclusive evidence of an impact origin for suspected crater landforms, the synoptic perspective provided by various remote sensing systems can often serve as a pathfinder to key deposits which can then be targetted for intensive field study. In addition, remote sensing imagery can be used as a tool in the search for impact and other catastrophic explosion landforms on the basis of localized disruption and anomaly patterns. In order to reconstruct original dimensions of large, complex impact features in isolated, inaccessible regions, remote sensing imagery can be used to make preliminary estimates in the absence of field geophysical surveys. The experienced gained from two decades of planetary remote sensing of impact craters on the terrestrial planets, as well as the techniques developed for recognizing stages of degradation and initial crater morphology, can now be applied to the problem of discovering and studying eroded impact landforms on Earth. Preliminary results of remote sensing analyses of a set of terrestrial impact features in various states of degradation, geologic settings, and for a broad range of diameters and hence energies of formation are summarized. The intention is to develop a database of remote sensing signatures for catastrophic impact landforms which can then be used in EOS-era global surveys as the basis for locating the possibly hundreds of missing impact structures. In addition, refinement of initial dimensions of extremely recent structures such as Zhamanshin and Bosumtwi is an important objective in order to permit re-evaluation of global Earth system responses associated with these types of events.

Methods of Determining Playa Surface Conditions Using Remote Sensing

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-10-08

NO. 11. TITLE (include Security Classification) METHODS OF DETERMINING PLAYA SURFACE CONDITIONS USING REMOTE SENSING 12. PERSONAL AUTHOR(S) J. PONDER...PLAYA SURFACE CONDITIONS USING REMOTE SENSING J. Ponder Henley U. S. Army Engineer Topographic Laboratories Fort Belvoir, Virginia 22060-5546 "ABSTRACT...geochemistry, hydrology and remote sensing but all of these are important to the understanding of these unique geomorphic features. There is a large body

Review of Remote Sensing Needs and Applications in Africa

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brown, Molly E.

2007-01-01

Remote sensing data has had an important role in identifying and responding to inter-annual variations in the African environment during the past three decades. As a largely agricultural region with diverse but generally limited government capacity to acquire and distribute ground observations of rainfall, temperature and other parameters, remote sensing is sometimes the only reliable measure of crop growing conditions in Africa. Thus, developing and maintaining the technical and scientific capacity to analyze and utilize satellite remote sensing data in Africa is critical to augmenting the continent's local weather/climate observation networks as well as its agricultural and natural resource development and management. The report Review of Remote Sensing Needs and Applications in Africa' has as its central goal to recommend to the US Agency for International Development an appropriate approach to support sustainable remote sensing applications at African regional remote sensing centers. The report focuses on "RS applications" to refer to the acquisition, maintenance and archiving, dissemination, distribution, analysis, and interpretation of remote sensing data, as well as the integration of interpreted data with other spatial data products. The report focuses on three primary remote sensing centers: (1) The AGRHYMET Regional Center in Niamey, Niger, created in 1974, is a specialized institute of the Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS), with particular specialization in science and techniques applied to agricultural development, rural development, and natural resource management. (2) The Regional Centre for Maiming of Resources for Development (RCMRD) in Nairobi, Kenya, established in 1975 under the auspices of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the Organization of African Unity (now the African Union), is an intergovernmental organization, with 15 member states from eastern and southern Africa. (3) The

Wireless Command-and-Control of UAV-Based Imaging LANs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herwitz, Stanley; Dunagan, S. E.; Sullivan, D. V.; Slye, R. E.; Leung, J. G.; Johnson, L. F.

2006-01-01

Dual airborne imaging system networks were operated using a wireless line-of-sight telemetry system developed as part of a 2002 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imaging mission over the USA s largest coffee plantation on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. A primary mission objective was the evaluation of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) 802.11b wireless technology for reduction of payload telemetry costs associated with UAV remote sensing missions. Predeployment tests with a conventional aircraft demonstrated successful wireless broadband connectivity between a rapidly moving airborne imaging local area network (LAN) and a fixed ground station LAN. Subsequently, two separate LANs with imaging payloads, packaged in exterior-mounted pressure pods attached to the underwing of NASA's Pathfinder-Plus UAV, were operated wirelessly by ground-based LANs over independent Ethernet bridges. Digital images were downlinked from the solar-powered aircraft at data rates of 2-6 megabits per second (Mbps) over a range of 6.5 9.5 km. An integrated wide area network enabled payload monitoring and control through the Internet from a range of ca. 4000 km during parts of the mission. The recent advent of 802.11g technology is expected to boost the system data rate by about a factor of five.

Application of Sensor Fusion to Improve Uav Image Classification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jabari, S.; Fathollahi, F.; Zhang, Y.

2017-08-01

Image classification is one of the most important tasks of remote sensing projects including the ones that are based on using UAV images. Improving the quality of UAV images directly affects the classification results and can save a huge amount of time and effort in this area. In this study, we show that sensor fusion can improve image quality which results in increasing the accuracy of image classification. Here, we tested two sensor fusion configurations by using a Panchromatic (Pan) camera along with either a colour camera or a four-band multi-spectral (MS) camera. We use the Pan camera to benefit from its higher sensitivity and the colour or MS camera to benefit from its spectral properties. The resulting images are then compared to the ones acquired by a high resolution single Bayer-pattern colour camera (here referred to as HRC). We assessed the quality of the output images by performing image classification tests. The outputs prove that the proposed sensor fusion configurations can achieve higher accuracies compared to the images of the single Bayer-pattern colour camera. Therefore, incorporating a Pan camera on-board in the UAV missions and performing image fusion can help achieving higher quality images and accordingly higher accuracy classification results.

Chemical Remote Sensing ’Proof of Concept’,

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-03-31

A122 579 CHEMICAL REMOTE SENSING ;PROOF OF CONCEPT’(U) UTAH 1/I \\ STATE UNIV LOGAN ELECTRO-DYNAMICS LAB BARTSCHI ET AL. 31 MAR 81 SCIENTIFC-8...STANDARDS -I963-A AFGL-TR-81-021 2 CHEMICAL REMOTE SENSING "Proof of Concept" B.Y. Bartschi F. P. DelGreco M. Ahmadjian Electro-Dynamics Laboratories...Applications of remote sensing 2 2.2 Program Development 4 -O 3.1 Optical Layout 6 3.2 Block Diagram of Sensor System 7 3.3 Sensor Facility 10 3.4

Remote sensing impact on corridor selection and placement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thomson, F. J.; Sellman, A. N.

1975-01-01

Computer-aided corridor selection techniques, utilizing digitized data bases of socio-economic, census, and cadastral data, and developed for highway corridor routing are considered. Land resource data generated from various remote sensing data sources were successfully merged with the ancillary data files of a corridor selection model and prototype highway corridors were designed using the combined data set. Remote sensing derived information considered useful for highway corridor location, special considerations in geometric correction of remote sensing data to facilitate merging it with ancillary data files, and special interface requirements are briefly discussed.

Remote Sensing of Precipitation from Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stocker, Erich Franz

2010-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the use of remote sensing of precipitation from satellite observations. The purpose of the presentation is to introduce the three prime instrument types for measuring precipitation from space, give an overview of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission, provides examples of how measurements from space can be used, and provides simple, high level scenarios for how remote sensed precipitation data can be used by planners and managers.

Summary: Remote sensing soil moisture research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schmer, F. A.; Werner, H. D.; Waltz, F. A.

1970-01-01

During the 1969 and 1970 growing seasons research was conducted to investigate the relationship between remote sensing imagery and soil moisture. The research was accomplished under two completely different conditions: (1) cultivated cropland in east central South Dakota, and (2) rangeland in western South Dakota. Aerial and ground truth data are being studied and correlated in order to evaluate the moisture supply and water use. Results show that remote sensing is a feasible method for monitoring soil moisture.

Photogrammetry and remote sensing education subjects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lazaridou, Maria A.; Karagianni, Aikaterini Ch.

2017-09-01

The rapid technologic advances in the scientific areas of photogrammetry and remote sensing require continuous readjustments at the educational programs and their implementation. The teaching teamwork should deal with the challenge to offer the volume of the knowledge without preventing the understanding of principles and methods and also to introduce "new" knowledge (advances, trends) followed by evaluation and presentation of relevant applications. This is of particular importance for a Civil Engineering Faculty as this in Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, as the framework of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing is closely connected with applications in the four educational Divisions of the Faculty. This paper refers to the above and includes subjects of organizing the courses in photogrammetry and remote sensing in the Civil Engineering Faculty of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. A scheme of the general curriculum as well the teaching aims and methods are also presented.

Strategies for using remotely sensed data in hydrologic models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peck, E. L.; Keefer, T. N.; Johnson, E. R. (Principal Investigator)

1981-01-01

Present and planned remote sensing capabilities were evaluated. The usefulness of six remote sensing capabilities (soil moisture, land cover, impervious area, areal extent of snow cover, areal extent of frozen ground, and water equivalent of the snow cover) with seven hydrologic models (API, CREAMS, NWSRFS, STORM, STANFORD, SSARR, and NWSRFS Snowmelt) were reviewed. The results indicate remote sensing information has only limited value for use with the hydrologic models in their present form. With minor modifications to the models the usefulness would be enhanced. Specific recommendations are made for incorporating snow covered area measurements in the NWSRFS Snowmelt model. Recommendations are also made for incorporating soil moisture measurements in NWSRFS. Suggestions are made for incorporating snow covered area, soil moisture, and others in STORM and SSARR. General characteristics of a hydrologic model needed to make maximum use of remotely sensed data are discussed. Suggested goals for improvements in remote sensing for use in models are also established.

Evapotranspiration and remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schmugge, T. J.; Gurney, R.

1982-01-01

There are three things required for evapotranspiration to occur: (1) energy (580 cal/gm) for the change of phase of the water; (2) a source of the water, i.e., adequate soil moisture in the surface layer or in the root zone of the plant; and (3) a sink for the water, i.e., a moisture deficit in the air above the ground. Remote sensing can contribute information to the first two of these conditions by providing estimates of solar insolation, surface albedo, surface temperature, vegetation cover, and soil moisture content. In addition there have been attempts to estimate precipitation and shelter air temperature from remotely sensed data. The problem remains to develop methods for effectively using these sources of information to make large area estimates of evapotranspiration.

Remote sensing by satellite - Technical and operational implications for international cooperation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Doyle, S. E.

1976-01-01

International cooperation in the U.S. Space Program is discussed and related to the NASA program for remote sensing of the earth. Satellite remote sensing techniques are considered along with the selection of the best sensors and wavelength bands. The technology of remote sensing satellites is considered with emphasis on the Landsat system configuration. Future aspects of remote sensing satellites are considered.

Remote Sensing and the Kyoto Protocol: A Workshop Summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosenqvist, Ake; Imhoff, Marc; Milne, Anthony; Dobson, Craig

2000-01-01

The Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change contains quantified, legally binding commitments to limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels and allows carbon emissions to be balanced by carbon sinks represented by vegetation. The issue of using vegetation cover as an emission offset raises a debate about the adequacy of current remote sensing systems and data archives to both assess carbon stocks/sinks at 1990 levels, and monitor the current and future global status of those stocks. These concerns and the potential ratification of the Protocol among participating countries is stimulating policy debates and underscoring a need for the exchange of information between the international legal community and the remote sensing community. On October 20-22 1999, two working groups of the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) joined with the University of Michigan (Michigan, USA) to convene discussions on how remote sensing technology could contribute to the information requirements raised by implementation of, and compliance with, the Kyoto Protocol. The meeting originated as a joint effort between the Global Monitoring Working Group and the Radar Applications Working Group in Commission VII of the ISPRS, co-sponsored by the University of Michigan. Tile meeting was attended by representatives from national government agencies and international organizations and academic institutions. Some of the key themes addressed were: (1) legal aspects of transnational remote sensing in the context of the Kyoto Protocol; (2) a review of the current and future and remote sensing technologies that could be applied to the Kyoto Protocol; (3) identification of areas where additional research is needed in order to advance and align remote sensing technology with the requirements and expectations of the Protocol; and 94) the bureaucratic and research management approaches needed to align the remote sensing

Method of determining forest production from remotely sensed forest parameters

DOEpatents

Corey, J.C.; Mackey, H.E. Jr.

1987-08-31

A method of determining forest production entirely from remotely sensed data in which remotely sensed multispectral scanner (MSS) data on forest 5 composition is combined with remotely sensed radar imaging data on forest stand biophysical parameters to provide a measure of forest production. A high correlation has been found to exist between the remotely sensed radar imaging data and on site measurements of biophysical 10 parameters such as stand height, diameter at breast height, total tree height, mean area per tree, and timber stand volume.

Remote sensing of vegetation structure using computer vision

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dandois, Jonathan P.

High-spatial resolution measurements of vegetation structure are needed for improving understanding of ecosystem carbon, water and nutrient dynamics, the response of ecosystems to a changing climate, and for biodiversity mapping and conservation, among many research areas. Our ability to make such measurements has been greatly enhanced by continuing developments in remote sensing technology---allowing researchers the ability to measure numerous forest traits at varying spatial and temporal scales and over large spatial extents with minimal to no field work, which is costly for large spatial areas or logistically difficult in some locations. Despite these advances, there remain several research challenges related to the methods by which three-dimensional (3D) and spectral datasets are joined (remote sensing fusion) and the availability and portability of systems for frequent data collections at small scale sampling locations. Recent advances in the areas of computer vision structure from motion (SFM) and consumer unmanned aerial systems (UAS) offer the potential to address these challenges by enabling repeatable measurements of vegetation structural and spectral traits at the scale of individual trees. However, the potential advances offered by computer vision remote sensing also present unique challenges and questions that need to be addressed before this approach can be used to improve understanding of forest ecosystems. For computer vision remote sensing to be a valuable tool for studying forests, bounding information about the characteristics of the data produced by the system will help researchers understand and interpret results in the context of the forest being studied and of other remote sensing techniques. This research advances understanding of how forest canopy and tree 3D structure and color are accurately measured by a relatively low-cost and portable computer vision personal remote sensing system: 'Ecosynth'. Recommendations are made for optimal

Active remote sensing.

Treesearch

Hans-Erik Andersen; Stephen E. Reutebuch; Robert J. McGaughey

2006-01-01

The development of remote sensing technologies increases the potential to support more precise, efficient, and ecologically-sensitive approaches to forest resource management. One of the primary requirements of precision forest management is accurate and detailed 3D spatial data relating to the type and condition of forest stands and characteristics of the underlying...

a Study on Automatic Uav Image Mosaic Method for Paroxysmal Disaster

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, M.; Li, D.; Fan, D.

2012-07-01

As everyone knows, some paroxysmal disasters, such as flood, can do a great damage in short time. Timely, accurate, and fast acquisition of sufficient disaster information is the prerequisite facing with disaster emergency. Due to UAV's superiority in acquiring disaster data, UAV, a rising remote sensed data has gradually become the first choice for departments of disaster prevention and mitigation to collect the disaster information at first hand. In this paper, a novel and fast strategy is proposed for registering and mosaicing UAV data. Firstly, the original images will not be zoomed in to be 2 times larger ones at the initial course of SIFT operator, and the total number of the pyramid octaves in scale space is reduced to speed up the matching process; sequentially, RANSAC(Random Sample Consensus) is used to eliminate the mismatching tie points. Then, bundle adjustment is introduced to solve all of the camera geometrical calibration parameters jointly. Finally, the best seamline searching strategy based on dynamic schedule is applied to solve the dodging problem arose by aeroplane's side-looking. Beside, a weighted fusion estimation algorithm is employed to eliminate the "fusion ghost" phenomenon.

Hydrological Application of Remote Sensing: Surface States -- Snow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, Dorothy K.; Kelly, Richard E. J.; Foster, James L.; Chang, Alfred T. C.

2004-01-01

Remote sensing research of snow cover has been accomplished for nearly 40 years. The use of visible, near-infrared, active and passive-microwave remote sensing for the analysis of snow cover is reviewed with an emphasis on the work on the last decade.

Remote sensing education in NASA's technology transfer program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weinstein, R. H.

1981-01-01

Remote sensing is a principal focus of NASA's technology transfer program activity with major attention to remote sensing education the Regional Program and the University Applications Program. Relevant activities over the past five years are reviewed and perspective on future directions is presented.

Remote Sensing Terminology in a Global and Knowledge-Based World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kancheva, Rumiana

The paper is devoted to terminology issues related to all aspects of remote sensing research and applications. Terminology is the basis for a better understanding among people. It is crucial to keep up with the latest developments and novelties of the terminology in advanced technology fields such as aerospace science and industry. This is especially true in remote sensing and geoinformatics which develop rapidly and have ever extending applications in various domains of science and human activities. Remote sensing terminology issues are directly relevant to the contemporary worldwide policies on information accessibility, dissemination and utilization of research results in support of solutions to global environmental challenges and sustainable development goals. Remote sensing and spatial information technologies are an integral part of the international strategies for cooperation in scientific, research and application areas with a particular accent on environmental monitoring, ecological problems natural resources management, climate modeling, weather forecasts, disaster mitigation and many others to which remote sensing data can be put. Remote sensing researchers, professionals, students and decision makers of different counties and nationalities should fully understand, interpret and translate into their native language any term, definition or acronym found in papers, books, proceedings, specifications, documentation, and etc. The importance of the correct use, precise definition and unification of remote sensing terms refers not only to people working in this field but also to experts in a variety of disciplines who handle remote sensing data and information products. In this paper, we draw the attention on the specifics, peculiarities and recent needs of compiling specialized dictionaries in the area of remote sensing focusing on Earth observations and the integration of remote sensing with other geoinformation technologies such as photogrammetry, geodesy

Remote sensing, imaging, and signal engineering

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Brase, J.M.

1993-03-01

This report discusses the Remote Sensing, Imaging, and Signal Engineering (RISE) trust area which has been very active in working to define new directions. Signal and image processing have always been important support for existing programs at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), but now these technologies are becoming central to the formation of new programs. Exciting new applications such as high-resolution telescopes, radar remote sensing, and advanced medical imaging are allowing us to participate in the development of new programs.

Remote sensing utility in a disaster struck urban environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rush, M.; Holguin, A.; Vernon, S.

1974-01-01

A project to determine the ways in which remote sensing can contribute to solutions of urban public health problems in time of natural disaster is discussed. The objectives of the project are to determine and describe remote sensing standard operating procedures for public health assistance during disaster relief operations which will aid the agencies and organizations involved in disaster intervention. Proposed tests to determine the validity of the remote sensing system are reported.

Bibliography of Remote Sensing Techniques Used in Wetland Research

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-01-01

8217 is investigating the application of remote sensing technology for detecting changes in wetland environments. This report documents a bibliographic...search conducted as part of that work unit on applications of remote sensing techniques in wetland research. Results were used to guide research...efforts on the use of remote sensing technology for wetland change detection and assessment. The citations are presented in three appendixes, organized by wetland type, sensor type, and author.

Applied Remote Sensing Program (ARSP)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mouat, D. A.; Johnson, J. D.; Foster, K. E.

1977-01-01

Descriptions of projects engaged by the Applied Remote Sensors Program in the state of Arizona are contained in an annual report for the fiscal year 1976-1977. Remote sensing techniques included thermal infrared imagery in analog and digital form and conversion of data into thermograms. Delineation of geologic areas, surveys of vegetation and inventory of resources were also presented.

Remote sensing for mined area reclamation: Application inventory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1971-01-01

Applications of aerial remote sensing to coal mined area reclamation are documented, and information concerning available data banks for coal producing areas in the east and midwest is given. A summary of mined area information requirements to which remote sensing methods might contribute is included.

Hyperspectral remote sensing of plant pigments.

PubMed

Blackburn, George Alan

2007-01-01

The dynamics of pigment concentrations are diagnostic of a range of plant physiological properties and processes. This paper appraises the developing technologies and analytical methods for quantifying pigments non-destructively and repeatedly across a range of spatial scales using hyperspectral remote sensing. Progress in deriving predictive relationships between various characteristics and transforms of hyperspectral reflectance data are evaluated and the roles of leaf and canopy radiative transfer models are reviewed. Requirements are identified for more extensive intercomparisons of different approaches and for further work on the strategies for interpreting canopy scale data. The paper examines the prospects for extending research to the wider range of pigments in addition to chlorophyll, testing emerging methods of hyperspectral analysis and exploring the fusion of hyperspectral and LIDAR remote sensing. In spite of these opportunities for further development and the refinement of techniques, current evidence of an expanding range of applications in the ecophysiological, environmental, agricultural, and forestry sciences highlights the growing value of hyperspectral remote sensing of plant pigments.

Remote Sensing Information Classification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rickman, Douglas L.

2008-01-01

This viewgraph presentation reviews the classification of Remote Sensing data in relation to epidemiology. Classification is a way to reduce the dimensionality and precision to something a human can understand. Classification changes SCALAR data into NOMINAL data.

Remote Sensing Information Gateway

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Remote Sensing Information Gateway, a tool that allows scientists, researchers and decision makers to access a variety of multi-terabyte, environmental datasets and to subset the data and obtain only needed variables, greatly improving the download time.

Application of Low-Cost Fixed-Wing UAV for Inland Lakes Shoreline Investigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Templin, Tomasz; Popielarczyk, Dariusz; Kosecki, Rafał

2017-10-01

One of the most important factors that influences the performance of geomorphologic parameters on urban lakes is the water level. It fluctuates periodically, causing shoreline changes. It is especially significant for typical environmental studies like bathymetric surveys, morphometric parameters calculation, sediment depth changes, thermal structure, water quality monitoring, etc. In most reservoirs, it can be obtained from digitized historical maps or plans or directly measured using the instruments such as: geodetic total station, GNSS receivers, UAV with different sensors, satellite and aerial photos, terrestrial and airborne light detection and ranging, or others. Today one of the most popular measuring platforms, increasingly applied in many applications is UAV. Unmanned aerial system can be a cheap, easy to use, on-demand technology for gathering remote sensing data. Our study presents a reliable methodology for shallow lake shoreline investigation with the use of a low-cost fixed-wing UAV system. The research was implemented on a small, eutrophic urban inland reservoir located in the northern part of Poland—Lake Suskie. The geodetic TS, and RTK/GNSS measurements, hydroacoustic soundings and experimental aerial mapping were conducted by the authors in 2012-2015. The article specifically describes the UAV system used for experimental measurements, the obtained results and the accuracy analysis. Final conclusions demonstrate that even a low-cost fixed-wing UAV can provide an excellent tool for accurately surveying a shallow lake shoreline and generate valuable geoinformation data collected definitely faster than when traditional geodetic methods are employed.

Development of Open source-based automatic shooting and processing UAV imagery for Orthoimage Using Smart Camera UAV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, J. W.; Jeong, H. H.; Kim, J. S.; Choi, C. U.

2016-06-01

Recently, aerial photography with unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system uses UAV and remote controls through connections of ground control system using bandwidth of about 430 MHz radio Frequency (RF) modem. However, as mentioned earlier, existing method of using RF modem has limitations in long distance communication. The Smart Camera equipments's LTE (long-term evolution), Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi to implement UAV that uses developed UAV communication module system carried out the close aerial photogrammetry with the automatic shooting. Automatic shooting system is an image capturing device for the drones in the area's that needs image capturing and software for loading a smart camera and managing it. This system is composed of automatic shooting using the sensor of smart camera and shooting catalog management which manages filmed images and information. Processing UAV imagery module used Open Drone Map. This study examined the feasibility of using the Smart Camera as the payload for a photogrammetric UAV system. The open soure tools used for generating Android, OpenCV (Open Computer Vision), RTKLIB, Open Drone Map.

Autonomous agricultural remote sensing systems with high spatial and temporal resolutions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiang, Haitao

In this research, two novel agricultural remote sensing (RS) systems, a Stand-alone Infield Crop Monitor RS System (SICMRS) and an autonomous Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) based RS system have been studied. A high-resolution digital color and multi-spectral camera was used as the image sensor for the SICMRS system. An artificially intelligent (AI) controller based on artificial neural network (ANN) and an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) was developed. Morrow Plots corn field RS images in the 2004 and 2006 growing seasons were collected by the SICMRS system. The field site contained 8 subplots (9.14 m x 9.14 m) that were planted with corn and three different fertilizer treatments were used among those subplots. The raw RS images were geometrically corrected, resampled to 10cm resolution, removed soil background and calibrated to real reflectance. The RS images from two growing seasons were studied and 10 different vegetation indices were derived from each day's image. The result from the image processing demonstrated that the vegetation indices have temporal effects. To achieve high quality RS data, one has to utilize the right indices and capture the images at the right time in the growing season. Maximum variations among the image data set are within the V6-V10 stages, which indicated that these stages are the best period to identify the spatial variability caused by the nutrient stress in the corn field. The derived vegetation indices were also used to build yield prediction models via the linear regression method. At that point, all of the yield prediction models were evaluated by comparing the R2-value and the best index model from each day's image was picked based on the highest R 2-value. It was shown that the green normalized difference vegetation (GNDVI) based model is more sensitive to yield prediction than other indices-based models. During the VT-R4 stages, the GNDVI based models were able to explain more than 95% potential corn yield

Cybernetic Basis and System Practice of Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tan, X.; Jing, X.; Chen, R.; Ming, Z.; He, L.; Sun, Y.; Sun, X.; Yan, L.

2017-09-01

Cybernetics provides a new set of ideas and methods for the study of modern science, and it has been fully applied in many areas. However, few people have introduced cybernetics into the field of remote sensing. The paper is based on the imaging process of remote sensing system, introducing cybernetics into the field of remote sensing, establishing a space-time closed-loop control theory for the actual operation of remote sensing. The paper made the process of spatial information coherently, and improved the comprehensive efficiency of the space information from acquisition, procession, transformation to application. We not only describes the application of cybernetics in remote sensing platform control, sensor control, data processing control, but also in whole system of remote sensing imaging process control. We achieve the information of output back to the input to control the efficient operation of the entire system. This breakthrough combination of cybernetics science and remote sensing science will improve remote sensing science to a higher level.

Learning Methods of Remote Sensing In the 2013 Curriculum of Secondary School

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lili Somantri, Nandi

2016-11-01

The new remote sensing material included in the subjects of geography in the curriculum of 1994. For geography teachers generation of 90s and over who in college do not get the material remote sensing, for teaching is a tough matter. Most teachers only give a theoretical matter, and do not carry out practical reasons in the lack of facilities and infrastructure of computer laboratories. Therefore, in this paper studies the importance about the method or manner of teaching remote sensing material in schools. The purpose of this paper is 1) to explain the position of remote sensing material in the study of geography, 2) analyze the Geography Curriculum 2013 Subjects related to remote sensing material, 3) describes a method of teaching remote sensing material in schools. The method used in this paper is a descriptive analytical study supported by the literature. The conclusion of this paper that the position of remote sensing in the study of geography is a method or a way to obtain spatial data earth's surface. In the 2013 curriculum remote sensing material has been applied to the study of land use and transportation. Remote sensing methods of teaching must go through a practicum, which starts from the introduction of the theory of remote sensing, data extraction phase of remote sensing imagery to produce maps, both visually and digitally, field surveys, interpretation of test accuracy, and improved maps.

Use of Remote Sensing for Decision Support in Africa

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Policelli, Frederick S.

2007-01-01

Over the past 30 years, the scientific community has learned a great deal about the Earth as an integrated system. Much of this research has been enabled by the development of remote sensing technologies and their operation from space. Decision makers in many nations have begun to make use of remote sensing data for resource management, policy making, and sustainable development planning. This paper makes an attempt to provide a survey of the current state of the requirements and use of remote sensing for sustainable development in Africa. This activity has shown that there are not many climate data ready decision support tools already functioning in Africa. There are, however, endusers with known requirements who could benefit from remote sensing data.

SmartAQnet: remote and in-situ sensing of urban air quality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Budde, Matthias; Riedel, Till; Beigl, Michael; Schäfer, Klaus; Emeis, Stefan; Cyrys, Josef; Schnelle-Kreis, Jürgen; Philipp, Andreas; Ziegler, Volker; Grimm, Hans; Gratza, Thomas

2017-10-01

Air quality and the associated subjective and health-related quality of life are among the important topics of urban life in our time. However, it is very difficult for many cities to take measures to accommodate today's needs concerning e.g. mobility, housing and work, because a consistent fine-granular data and information on causal chains is largely missing. This has the potential to change, as today, both large-scale basic data as well as new promising measuring approaches are becoming available. The project "SmartAQnet", funded by the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI), is based on a pragmatic, data driven approach, which for the first time combines existing data sets with a networked mobile measurement strategy in the urban space. By connecting open data, such as weather data or development plans, remote sensing of influencing factors, and new mobile measurement approaches, such as participatory sensing with low-cost sensor technology, "scientific scouts" (autonomous, mobile smart dust measurement device that is auto-calibrated to a high-quality reference instrument within an intelligent monitoring network) and demand-oriented measurements by light-weight UAVs, a novel measuring and analysis concept is created within the model region of Augsburg, Germany. In addition to novel analytics, a prototypical technology stack is planned which, through modern analytics methods and Big Data and IoT technologies, enables application in a scalable way.

Ionospheric Profiles from Ultraviolet Remote Sensing

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-01-01

remote sensing of the ionosphere from orbiting space platforms. Remote sensing of the nighttime ionosphere is a relatively straightforward process due to the absence of the complications brought about by daytime solar radiation. Further, during the nighttime hours, the O(+)-H(+) transition level in both the mid- and low-latitude ionospheres lies around 750 km, which is within the range of accuracy of the path matrix inversion. The intensity of the O(+)-e(-) recombination radiation as observed from orbiting space platforms can now be used to

Chemical-biological defense remote sensing: what's happening

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carrico, John P.

1998-08-01

The proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) continues to be a serious threat to the security of the US. Proliferation of chemical and biological (CB) weapons is particularly disturbing, and the threats posed can be devastating. Critical elements of the US efforts to reduce and counter WMD proliferation include: (1) the location and characterization of WMD facilities and capabilities worldwide; (2) the ability to rapidly detect and identify the use of CB weapons for expeditious warning and reporting on the battlefield; and (3) the capability to mitigate deleterious consequences of a CB incident through effective protective and medical treatment measures. Remote sensing has been touted as a key technology in these efforts. Historically, the role of remote sensing in CB defense has been to provide early warning of an attack from an extended distance. However, additional roles for remote sensing in CB defense, as well as applications in related missions, are possible and should be pursued. This paper examines what has been happening in remote sensing over the past decade to address needs in this area. Accomplishments, emerging technologies, programmatic issues, and opportunities for the future are covered. The Department of Defence chemical- biological, the Department of Energy's Chemical Analysis by Laser Interrogation of Proliferation Effluents, and other agency related programs are examined. Also, the status of remote sensing in the commercial market arena for environmental monitoring, its relevance to the WMD counterproliferation program, and opportunities for technology transfer are discussed. A course of action for the future is recommended.

Hyperspectral Remote Sensing of Foliar Nitrogen Content

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knyazikhin, Yuri; Schull, Mitchell A.; Stenberg, Pauline; Moettus, Matti; Rautiainen, Miina; Yang, Yan; Marshak, Alexander; Carmona, Pedro Latorre; Kaufmann, Robert K.; Lewis, Philip;

Remote sensing-a geophysical perspective.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Watson, K.

1985-01-01

In this review of developments in the field of remote sensing from a geophysical perspective, the subject is limited to the electromagnetic spectrum from 0.4 mu m to 25cm. Three broad energy categories are covered: solar reflected, thermal infrared, and microwave.-from Authorremote sensing electromagnetic spectrum solar reflected thermal infrared microwave geophysics

Western Regional Remote Sensing Conference Proceedings, 1979

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

Remote sensing users from the 14 western states explained their diverse applications of LANDSAT data, discussed operational goals, and exchanged problems and solutions. In addition, conference participants stressed the need for increased cooperation among state and local governments, private industry, and universities to aid NASA's objective of transferring to user agencies the ability to operationally use remote sensing technology for resource and environmental quality management.

Multi- and hyperspectral geologic remote sensing: A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van der Meer, Freek D.; van der Werff, Harald M. A.; van Ruitenbeek, Frank J. A.; Hecker, Chris A.; Bakker, Wim H.; Noomen, Marleen F.; van der Meijde, Mark; Carranza, E. John M.; Smeth, J. Boudewijn de; Woldai, Tsehaie

2012-02-01

Geologists have used remote sensing data since the advent of the technology for regional mapping, structural interpretation and to aid in prospecting for ores and hydrocarbons. This paper provides a review of multispectral and hyperspectral remote sensing data, products and applications in geology. During the early days of Landsat Multispectral scanner and Thematic Mapper, geologists developed band ratio techniques and selective principal component analysis to produce iron oxide and hydroxyl images that could be related to hydrothermal alteration. The advent of the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflectance Radiometer (ASTER) with six channels in the shortwave infrared and five channels in the thermal region allowed to produce qualitative surface mineral maps of clay minerals (kaolinite, illite), sulfate minerals (alunite), carbonate minerals (calcite, dolomite), iron oxides (hematite, goethite), and silica (quartz) which allowed to map alteration facies (propylitic, argillic etc.). The step toward quantitative and validated (subpixel) surface mineralogic mapping was made with the advent of high spectral resolution hyperspectral remote sensing. This led to a wealth of techniques to match image pixel spectra to library and field spectra and to unravel mixed pixel spectra to pure endmember spectra to derive subpixel surface compositional information. These products have found their way to the mining industry and are to a lesser extent taken up by the oil and gas sector. The main threat for geologic remote sensing lies in the lack of (satellite) data continuity. There is however a unique opportunity to develop standardized protocols leading to validated and reproducible products from satellite remote sensing for the geology community. By focusing on geologic mapping products such as mineral and lithologic maps, geochemistry, P-T paths, fluid pathways etc. the geologic remote sensing community can bridge the gap with the geosciences community. Increasingly

Reliability analysis of airship remote sensing system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qin, Jun

1998-08-01

Airship Remote Sensing System (ARSS) for obtain the dynamic or real time images in the remote sensing of the catastrophe and the environment, is a mixed complex system. Its sensor platform is a remote control airship. The achievement of a remote sensing mission depends on a series of factors. For this reason, it is very important for us to analyze reliability of ARSS. In first place, the system model was simplified form multi-stage system to two-state system on the basis of the result of the failure mode and effect analysis and the failure tree failure mode effect and criticality analysis. The failure tree was created after analyzing all factors and their interrelations. This failure tree includes four branches, e.g. engine subsystem, remote control subsystem, airship construction subsystem, flying metrology and climate subsystem. By way of failure tree analysis and basic-events classing, the weak links were discovered. The result of test running shown no difference in comparison with theory analysis. In accordance with the above conclusions, a plan of the reliability growth and reliability maintenance were posed. System's reliability are raised from 89 percent to 92 percent with the reformation of the man-machine interactive interface, the augmentation of the secondary better-groupie and the secondary remote control equipment.

Using Remote Sensing Data to Constrain Models of Fault Interactions and Plate Boundary Deformation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glasscoe, M. T.; Donnellan, A.; Lyzenga, G. A.; Parker, J. W.; Milliner, C. W. D.

2016-12-01

Determining the distribution of slip and behavior of fault interactions at plate boundaries is a complex problem. Field and remotely sensed data often lack the necessary coverage to fully resolve fault behavior. However, realistic physical models may be used to more accurately characterize the complex behavior of faults constrained with observed data, such as GPS, InSAR, and SfM. These results will improve the utility of using combined models and data to estimate earthquake potential and characterize plate boundary behavior. Plate boundary faults exhibit complex behavior, with partitioned slip and distributed deformation. To investigate what fraction of slip becomes distributed deformation off major faults, we examine a model fault embedded within a damage zone of reduced elastic rigidity that narrows with depth and forward model the slip and resulting surface deformation. The fault segments and slip distributions are modeled using the JPL GeoFEST software. GeoFEST (Geophysical Finite Element Simulation Tool) is a two- and three-dimensional finite element software package for modeling solid stress and strain in geophysical and other continuum domain applications [Lyzenga, et al., 2000; Glasscoe, et al., 2004; Parker, et al., 2008, 2010]. New methods to advance geohazards research using computer simulations and remotely sensed observations for model validation are required to understand fault slip, the complex nature of fault interaction and plate boundary deformation. These models help enhance our understanding of the underlying processes, such as transient deformation and fault creep, and can aid in developing observation strategies for sUAV, airborne, and upcoming satellite missions seeking to determine how faults behave and interact and assess their associated hazard. Models will also help to characterize this behavior, which will enable improvements in hazard estimation. Validating the model results against remotely sensed observations will allow us to better

Laboratory exercises, remote sensing of the environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mintzer, O.; Ray, J.

1981-01-01

The exercises are designed to convey principles and theory of remote sensing, and methodologies of its application to civil engineering and environmental concerns, including agronomy, geography, geology, wildlife, forestry, hydrology, and other related fields. During the exercises the student is introduced to several types of remote sensing represented by imagery from conventional format: panchromatic, black-and-white infrared, color, and infrared, 35mm aerial photography, thermal infrared, radar, multispectral scanner, and LANDSAT. Upon completion of the exercises the student is expected to know: (1) the electromagnetic spectrum, its various wavelength sub-sections and their uses as sensors, (2) the limitations of each sensor, (3) the interpretation techniques used for extracting data from the various types of imagery, and (4) the cost effectiveness of remote sensing procedures for acquiring and evaluating data of the natural environment.

EPA REMOTE SENSING RESEARCH

EPA Science Inventory

The 2006 transgenic corn imaging research campaign has been greatly assisted through a cooperative effort with several Illinois growers who provided planting area and crop composition. This research effort was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of remote sensed imagery of var...

Commercial use of remote sensing in agriculture: a case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gnauck, Gary E.

1999-12-01

Over 25 years of research have clearly shown that an analysis of remote sensing imagery can provide information on agricultural crops. Most of this research has been funded by and directed toward the needs of government agencies. Commercial use of agricultural remote sensing has been limited to very small-scale operations supplying remote sensing services to a few selected customers. Datron/Transco Inc. undertook an internally funded remote sensing program directed toward the California cash crop industry (strawberries, lettuce, tomatoes, other fresh vegetables and cotton). The objectives of this program were twofold: (1) to assess the need and readiness of agricultural land managers to adopt remote sensing as a management tool, and (2) determine what technical barriers exist to large-scale implementation of this technology on a commercial basis. The program was divided into three phases: Planning, Engineering Test and Evaluation, and Commercial Operations. Findings: Remote sensing technology can deliver high resolution multispectral imagery with rapid turnaround, that can provide information on crop stress insects, disease and various soil parameters. The limiting factors to the use of remote sensing in agriculture are a lack of familiarization by the land managers, difficulty in translating 'information' into increased revenue or reduced cost for the land manager, and the large economies of scale needed to make the venture commercially viable.

Ariel: a UAV designed to fly at 100,000 ft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Papadales, Basil S.; Schoenung, Susan M.

1996-11-01

The Ariel unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was designed for NASA Ames Research Center to satisfy emerging civil science needs for subsonic flight at altitudes on the order of 100,000 ft. These include atmospheric monitoring of chemical species and environmental conditions related to global climate change. Ariel may be useful for a variety of civil and military remote sensing applications since, at an altitude of 100,000 ft, the UAV wold fly above all manned aircraft. The Ariel has a gross weight of 6400 lb with a wing span of 105 ft, a little shorter than that of the manned ER-2. Ariel is powered by a new propulsion system called the Bipropellant Expansion Turbine (BET). With a 300 hp BET, Ariel can climb to an altitude of 100,000 ft and loiter at Mach 0.63 for two hours while carrying a 600 lb payload. During this loiter, the UAV travels about 750 nm at 100,000 ft. It is possible to trade payload weight for range or endurance. Further design optimization or use of more advanced technology can result in substantially improved performance. With adequate funding, a proof of concept version of Ariel could be developed for initial flights by the year 2000.

Uav-Based Crops Classification with Joint Features from Orthoimage and Dsm Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, B.; Shi, Y.; Duan, Y.; Wu, W.

2018-04-01

Accurate crops classification remains a challenging task due to the same crop with different spectra and different crops with same spectrum phenomenon. Recently, UAV-based remote sensing approach gains popularity not only for its high spatial and temporal resolution, but also for its ability to obtain spectraand spatial data at the same time. This paper focus on how to take full advantages of spatial and spectrum features to improve crops classification accuracy, based on an UAV platform equipped with a general digital camera. Texture and spatial features extracted from the RGB orthoimage and the digital surface model of the monitoring area are analysed and integrated within a SVM classification framework. Extensive experiences results indicate that the overall classification accuracy is drastically improved from 72.9 % to 94.5 % when the spatial features are combined together, which verified the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method.

Earth remote sensing - 1970-1995

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thome, P. G.

1984-01-01

The past-achievements, current status, and future prospects of the Landsat terrestrial-remote-sensing satellite program are surveyed. Topics examined include the early history of space flight; the development of analysis techniques to interpret the multispectral images obtained by Landsats 1, 2, and 3; the characteristics of the advanced Landsat-4 Thematic Mapper; microwave scanning by Seasat and the Shuttle Imaging Radar; the usefulness of low-resolution AVHRR data from the NOAA satellites; improvements in Landsats 4 and 5 to permit tailoring of information to user needs; expansion and internationalization of the remote-sensing market in the late 1980s; and technological advances in both instrumentation and data-processing predicted by the 1990s.

Remote sensing of land surface phenology

USGS Publications Warehouse

Meier, G.A.; Brown, Jesslyn F.

2014-01-01

Remote sensing of land-surface phenology is an important method for studying the patterns of plant and animal growth cycles. Phenological events are sensitive to climate variation; therefore phenology data provide important baseline information documenting trends in ecology and detecting the impacts of climate change on multiple scales. The USGS Remote sensing of land surface phenology program produces annually, nine phenology indicator variables at 250 m and 1,000 m resolution for the contiguous U.S. The 12 year archive is available at http://phenology.cr.usgs.gov/index.php.

Hyperspectral Remote Sensing and Ecological Modeling Research and Education at Mid America Remote Sensing Center (MARC): Field and Laboratory Enhancement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cetin, Haluk

1999-01-01

The purpose of this project was to establish a new hyperspectral remote sensing laboratory at the Mid-America Remote sensing Center (MARC), dedicated to in situ and laboratory measurements of environmental samples and to the manipulation, analysis, and storage of remotely sensed data for environmental monitoring and research in ecological modeling using hyperspectral remote sensing at MARC, one of three research facilities of the Center of Reservoir Research at Murray State University (MSU), a Kentucky Commonwealth Center of Excellence. The equipment purchased, a FieldSpec FR portable spectroradiometer and peripherals, and ENVI hyperspectral data processing software, allowed MARC to provide hands-on experience, education, and training for the students of the Department of Geosciences in quantitative remote sensing using hyperspectral data, Geographic Information System (GIS), digital image processing (DIP), computer, geological and geophysical mapping; to provide field support to the researchers and students collecting in situ and laboratory measurements of environmental data; to create a spectral library of the cover types and to establish a World Wide Web server to provide the spectral library to other academic, state and Federal institutions. Much of the research will soon be published in scientific journals. A World Wide Web page has been created at the web site of MARC. Results of this project are grouped in two categories, education and research accomplishments. The Principal Investigator (PI) modified remote sensing and DIP courses to introduce students to ii situ field spectra and laboratory remote sensing studies for environmental monitoring in the region by using the new equipment in the courses. The PI collected in situ measurements using the spectroradiometer for the ER-2 mission to Puerto Rico project for the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) Airborne Simulator (MAS). Currently MARC is mapping water quality in Kentucky Lake and

Remote Sensing and Remote Control Activities in Europe and America: Part 2--Remote Sensing Ground Stations in Europe,

DTIC Science & Technology

1996-04-08

Development tasks and products of remote sensing ground stations in Europe are represented by the In-Sec Corporation and the Schlumberger Industries Corporation. The article presents the main products of these two corporations.

Development of sea ice monitoring with aerial remote sensing technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jiang, Xuhui; Han, Lei; Dong, Liang; Cui, Lulu; Bie, Jun; Fan, Xuewei

2014-11-01

In the north China Sea district, sea ice disaster is very serious every winter, which brings a lot of adverse effects to shipping transportation, offshore oil exploitation, and coastal engineering. In recent years, along with the changing of global climate, the sea ice situation becomes too critical. The monitoring of sea ice is playing a very important role in keeping human life and properties in safety, and undertaking of marine scientific research. The methods to monitor sea ice mainly include: first, shore observation; second, icebreaker monitoring; third, satellite remote sensing; and then aerial remote sensing monitoring. The marine station staffs use relevant equipments to monitor the sea ice in the shore observation. The icebreaker monitoring means: the workers complete the test of the properties of sea ice, such as density, salinity and mechanical properties. MODIS data and NOAA data are processed to get sea ice charts in the satellite remote sensing means. Besides, artificial visual monitoring method and some airborne remote sensors are adopted in the aerial remote sensing to monitor sea ice. Aerial remote sensing is an important means in sea ice monitoring because of its strong maneuverability, wide watching scale, and high resolution. In this paper, several methods in the sea ice monitoring using aerial remote sensing technology are discussed.

Research on active imaging information transmission technology of satellite borne quantum remote sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bi, Siwen; Zhen, Ming; Yang, Song; Lin, Xuling; Wu, Zhiqiang

2017-08-01

According to the development and application needs of Remote Sensing Science and technology, Prof. Siwen Bi proposed quantum remote sensing. Firstly, the paper gives a brief introduction of the background of quantum remote sensing, the research status and related researches at home and abroad on the theory, information mechanism and imaging experiments of quantum remote sensing and the production of principle prototype.Then, the quantization of pure remote sensing radiation field, the state function and squeezing effect of quantum remote sensing radiation field are emphasized. It also describes the squeezing optical operator of quantum light field in active imaging information transmission experiment and imaging experiments, achieving 2-3 times higher resolution than that of coherent light detection imaging and completing the production of quantum remote sensing imaging prototype. The application of quantum remote sensing technology can significantly improve both the signal-to-noise ratio of information transmission imaging and the spatial resolution of quantum remote sensing .On the above basis, Prof.Bi proposed the technical solution of active imaging information transmission technology of satellite borne quantum remote sensing, launched researches on its system composition and operation principle and on quantum noiseless amplifying devices, providing solutions and technical basis for implementing active imaging information technology of satellite borne Quantum Remote Sensing.

Active and Passive Remote Sensing of Ice

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-11-15

To demonstrate the use of polarimetry in passive remote sensing of azimuthally asymmetric features on a terrain surface, an experiment was designed...azimuthal asymmetry on the remotely sensed soil surface. It is also observed from the experiment that the brightness temperatures for all three Stokes...significant implication of this experiment is that the surface asymmetry can be detected with a measurement of U at a single azimuthal angle. -8

Remote sensing of Earth terrain

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kong, Jin AU; Shin, Robert T.; Nghiem, Son V.; Yueh, Herng-Aung; Han, Hsiu C.; Lim, Harold H.; Arnold, David V.

1990-01-01

Remote sensing of earth terrain is examined. The layered random medium model is used to investigate the fully polarimetric scattering of electromagnetic waves from vegetation. The model is used to interpret the measured data for vegetation fields such as rice, wheat, or soybean over water or soil. Accurate calibration of polarimetric radar systems is essential for the polarimetric remote sensing of earth terrain. A polarimetric calibration algorithm using three arbitrary in-scene reflectors is developed. In the interpretation of active and passive microwave remote sensing data from the earth terrain, the random medium model was shown to be quite successful. A multivariate K-distribution is proposed to model the statistics of fully polarimetric radar returns from earth terrain. In the terrain cover classification using the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images, the applications of the K-distribution model will provide better performance than the conventional Gaussian classifiers. The layered random medium model is used to study the polarimetric response of sea ice. Supervised and unsupervised classification procedures are also developed and applied to synthetic aperture radar polarimetric images in order to identify their various earth terrain components for more than two classes. These classification procedures were applied to San Francisco Bay and Traverse City SAR images.

An object-based storage model for distributed remote sensing images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Zhanwu; Li, Zhongmin; Zheng, Sheng

2006-10-01

It is very difficult to design an integrated storage solution for distributed remote sensing images to offer high performance network storage services and secure data sharing across platforms using current network storage models such as direct attached storage, network attached storage and storage area network. Object-based storage, as new generation network storage technology emerged recently, separates the data path, the control path and the management path, which solves the bottleneck problem of metadata existed in traditional storage models, and has the characteristics of parallel data access, data sharing across platforms, intelligence of storage devices and security of data access. We use the object-based storage in the storage management of remote sensing images to construct an object-based storage model for distributed remote sensing images. In the storage model, remote sensing images are organized as remote sensing objects stored in the object-based storage devices. According to the storage model, we present the architecture of a distributed remote sensing images application system based on object-based storage, and give some test results about the write performance comparison of traditional network storage model and object-based storage model.

Technical note: A simple approach for efficient collection of field reference data for calibrating remote sensing mapping of northern wetlands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gålfalk, Magnus; Karlson, Martin; Crill, Patrick; Bousquet, Philippe; Bastviken, David

2018-03-01

The calibration and validation of remote sensing land cover products are highly dependent on accurate field reference data, which are costly and practically challenging to collect. We describe an optical method for collection of field reference data that is a fast, cost-efficient, and robust alternative to field surveys and UAV imaging. A lightweight, waterproof, remote-controlled RGB camera (GoPro HERO4 Silver, GoPro Inc.) was used to take wide-angle images from 3.1 to 4.5 m in altitude using an extendable monopod, as well as representative near-ground (< 1 m) images to identify spectral and structural features that correspond to various land covers in present lighting conditions. A semi-automatic classification was made based on six surface types (graminoids, water, shrubs, dry moss, wet moss, and rock). The method enables collection of detailed field reference data, which is critical in many remote sensing applications, such as satellite-based wetland mapping. The method uses common non-expensive equipment, does not require special skills or training, and is facilitated by a step-by-step manual that is included in the Supplement. Over time a global ground cover database can be built that can be used as reference data for studies of non-forested wetlands from satellites such as Sentinel 1 and 2 (10 m pixel size).

Use of Openly Available Satellite Images for Remote Sensing Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, C.-K.

2011-09-01

With the advent of Google Earth, Google Maps, and Microsoft Bing Maps, high resolution satellite imagery are becoming more easily accessible than ever. It have been the case that the college students may already have wealth experiences with the high resolution satellite imagery by using these software and web services prior to any formal remote sensing education. It is obvious that the remote sensing education should be adjusted to the fact that the audience are already the customers of remote sensing products (through the use of the above mentioned services). This paper reports the use of openly available satellite imagery in an introductory-level remote sensing course in the Department of Geomatics of National Cheng Kung University as a term project. From the experience learned from the fall of 2009 and 2010, it shows that this term project has effectively aroused the students' enthusiastic toward Remote Sensing.

Remote Sensing Laboratory - RSL

ScienceCinema

None

2018-01-16

One of the primary resources supporting homeland security is the Remote Sensing Laboratory, or RSL. The Laboratory creates advanced technologies for emergency response operations, radiological incident response, and other remote sensing activities. RSL emergency response teams are on call 24-hours a day, and maintain the capability to deploy domestically and internationally in response to threats involving the loss, theft, or release of nuclear or radioactive material. Such incidents might include Nuclear Power Plant accidents, terrorist incidents involving nuclear or radiological materials, NASA launches, and transportation accidents involving nuclear materials. Working with the US Department of Homeland Security, RSL personnel equip, maintain, and conduct training on the mobile detection deployment unit, to provide nuclear radiological security at major national events such as the super bowl, the Indianapolis 500, New Year's Eve celebrations, presidential inaugurations, international meetings and conferences, just about any event where large numbers of people will gather.

Searches over graphs representing geospatial-temporal remote sensing data

DOEpatents

Brost, Randolph; Perkins, David Nikolaus

2018-03-06

Various technologies pertaining to identifying objects of interest in remote sensing images by searching over geospatial-temporal graph representations are described herein. Graphs are constructed by representing objects in remote sensing images as nodes, and connecting nodes with undirected edges representing either distance or adjacency relationships between objects and directed edges representing changes in time. Geospatial-temporal graph searches are made computationally efficient by taking advantage of characteristics of geospatial-temporal data in remote sensing images through the application of various graph search techniques.

Sea Surface Salinity: The Next Remote Sensing Challenge

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lagerloef, Gary S. E.; Swift, Calvin T.; LeVine, David M.

1995-01-01

A brief history of salinity remote sensing is presented. The role of sea surface salinity (SSS) in the far north Atlantic and the influence of salinity variations on upper ocean dynamics in the tropics are described. An assessment of the present state of the technology of the SSS satellite remote sensing is given.

Landsat's role in ecological applications of remote sensing.

Treesearch

Warren B. Cohen; Samuel N. Goward

2004-01-01

Remote sensing, geographic information systems, and modeling have combined to produce a virtual explosion of growth in ecological investigations and applications that are explicitly spatial and temporal. Of all remotely sensed data, those acquired by landsat sensors have played the most pivotal role in spatial and temporal scaling. Modern terrestrial ecology relies on...

Passive Polarimetric Remote Sensing of Snow and Ice

DTIC Science & Technology

1997-09-30

In recent years, polarimetric radiometry has shown great potential to revolutionize passive remote sensing of the ocean surface. As a result, several...polarimetric radiometer, in 2001. This project explores the possibility of applying this new technology to remote sensing in the Polar Regions by investigating the polarimetric signature of ice and snow.

Reproducibility of UAV-based earth topography reconstructions based on Structure-from-Motion algorithms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clapuyt, Francois; Vanacker, Veerle; Van Oost, Kristof

2016-05-01

Combination of UAV-based aerial pictures and Structure-from-Motion (SfM) algorithm provides an efficient, low-cost and rapid framework for remote sensing and monitoring of dynamic natural environments. This methodology is particularly suitable for repeated topographic surveys in remote or poorly accessible areas. However, temporal analysis of landform topography requires high accuracy of measurements and reproducibility of the methodology as differencing of digital surface models leads to error propagation. In order to assess the repeatability of the SfM technique, we surveyed a study area characterized by gentle topography with an UAV platform equipped with a standard reflex camera, and varied the focal length of the camera and location of georeferencing targets between flights. Comparison of different SfM-derived topography datasets shows that precision of measurements is in the order of centimetres for identical replications which highlights the excellent performance of the SfM workflow, all parameters being equal. The precision is one order of magnitude higher for 3D topographic reconstructions involving independent sets of ground control points, which results from the fact that the accuracy of the localisation of ground control points strongly propagates into final results.

A high throughput geocomputing system for remote sensing quantitative retrieval and a case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xue, Yong; Chen, Ziqiang; Xu, Hui; Ai, Jianwen; Jiang, Shuzheng; Li, Yingjie; Wang, Ying; Guang, Jie; Mei, Linlu; Jiao, Xijuan; He, Xingwei; Hou, Tingting

2011-12-01

The quality and accuracy of remote sensing instruments have been improved significantly, however, rapid processing of large-scale remote sensing data becomes the bottleneck for remote sensing quantitative retrieval applications. The remote sensing quantitative retrieval is a data-intensive computation application, which is one of the research issues of high throughput computation. The remote sensing quantitative retrieval Grid workflow is a high-level core component of remote sensing Grid, which is used to support the modeling, reconstruction and implementation of large-scale complex applications of remote sensing science. In this paper, we intend to study middleware components of the remote sensing Grid - the dynamic Grid workflow based on the remote sensing quantitative retrieval application on Grid platform. We designed a novel architecture for the remote sensing Grid workflow. According to this architecture, we constructed the Remote Sensing Information Service Grid Node (RSSN) with Condor. We developed a graphic user interface (GUI) tools to compose remote sensing processing Grid workflows, and took the aerosol optical depth (AOD) retrieval as an example. The case study showed that significant improvement in the system performance could be achieved with this implementation. The results also give a perspective on the potential of applying Grid workflow practices to remote sensing quantitative retrieval problems using commodity class PCs.

Integrated remotely sensed datasets for disaster management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCarthy, Timothy; Farrell, Ronan; Curtis, Andrew; Fotheringham, A. Stewart

2008-10-01

Video imagery can be acquired from aerial, terrestrial and marine based platforms and has been exploited for a range of remote sensing applications over the past two decades. Examples include coastal surveys using aerial video, routecorridor infrastructures surveys using vehicle mounted video cameras, aerial surveys over forestry and agriculture, underwater habitat mapping and disaster management. Many of these video systems are based on interlaced, television standards such as North America's NTSC and European SECAM and PAL television systems that are then recorded using various video formats. This technology has recently being employed as a front-line, remote sensing technology for damage assessment post-disaster. This paper traces the development of spatial video as a remote sensing tool from the early 1980s to the present day. The background to a new spatial-video research initiative based at National University of Ireland, Maynooth, (NUIM) is described. New improvements are proposed and include; low-cost encoders, easy to use software decoders, timing issues and interoperability. These developments will enable specialists and non-specialists collect, process and integrate these datasets within minimal support. This integrated approach will enable decision makers to access relevant remotely sensed datasets quickly and so, carry out rapid damage assessment during and post-disaster.

High Resolution UAV-based Passive Microwave L-band Imaging of Soil Moisture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gasiewski, A. J.; Stachura, M.; Elston, J.; McIntyre, E. M.

2013-12-01

Due to long electrical wavelengths and aperture size limitations the scaling of passive microwave remote sensing of soil moisture from spaceborne low-resolution applications to high resolution applications suitable for precision agriculture requires use of low flying aerial vehicles. This presentation summarizes a project to develop a commercial Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) hosting a precision microwave radiometer for mapping of soil moisture in high-value shallow root-zone crops. The project is based on the use of the Tempest electric-powered UAV and a compact digital L-band (1400-1427 MHz) passive microwave radiometer developed specifically for extremely small and lightweight aerial platforms or man-portable, tractor, or tower-based applications. Notable in this combination are a highly integrated UAV/radiometer antenna design and use of both the upwelling emitted signal from the surface and downwelling cold space signal for precise calibration using a lobe-correlating radiometer architecture. The system achieves a spatial resolution comparable to the altitude of the UAV above the ground while referencing upwelling measurements to the constant and well-known background temperature of cold space. The radiometer incorporates digital sampling and radio frequency interference mitigation along with infrared, near-infrared, and visible (red) sensors for surface temperature and vegetation biomass correction. This NASA-sponsored project is being developed both for commercial application in cropland water management, L-band satellite validation, and estuarian plume studies.

Experimental Sea Slicks in the Marsen (Maritime Remote Sensing) Exercise.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-10-30

Experimental slicks with various surface properties were generated in the North Sea as part of the MARSEN (Maritime Remote Sensing ) exercise. The one...with remote sensing instrumentation. Because of the numerous effects of surface films on air-sea interfacial processes, these experiments were designed...information was obtained on the influence of sea surface films on the interpretation of signals received by remote sensing systems. Criteria for the

Species classification using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-acquired high spatial resolution imagery in a heterogeneous grassland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Bing; He, Yuhong

2017-06-01

Investigating spatio-temporal variations of species composition in grassland is an essential step in evaluating grassland health conditions, understanding the evolutionary processes of the local ecosystem, and developing grassland management strategies. Space-borne remote sensing images (e.g., MODIS, Landsat, and Quickbird) with spatial resolutions varying from less than 1 m to 500 m have been widely applied for vegetation species classification at spatial scales from community to regional levels. However, the spatial resolutions of these images are not fine enough to investigate grassland species composition, since grass species are generally small in size and highly mixed, and vegetation cover is greatly heterogeneous. Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) as an emerging remote sensing platform offers a unique ability to acquire imagery at very high spatial resolution (centimetres). Compared to satellites or airplanes, UAVs can be deployed quickly and repeatedly, and are less limited by weather conditions, facilitating advantageous temporal studies. In this study, we utilize an octocopter, on which we mounted a modified digital camera (with near-infrared (NIR), green, and blue bands), to investigate species composition in a tall grassland in Ontario, Canada. Seven flight missions were conducted during the growing season (April to December) in 2015 to detect seasonal variations, and four of them were selected in this study to investigate the spatio-temporal variations of species composition. To quantitatively compare images acquired at different times, we establish a processing flow of UAV-acquired imagery, focusing on imagery quality evaluation and radiometric correction. The corrected imagery is then applied to an object-based species classification. Maps of species distribution are subsequently used for a spatio-temporal change analysis. Results indicate that UAV-acquired imagery is an incomparable data source for studying fine-scale grassland species composition

Research on assessment and improvement method of remote sensing image reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Li; Hua, Nian; Yu, Yanbo; Zhao, Zhanping

2018-01-01

Remote sensing image quality assessment and improvement is an important part of image processing. Generally, the use of compressive sampling theory in remote sensing imaging system can compress images while sampling which can improve efficiency. A method of two-dimensional principal component analysis (2DPCA) is proposed to reconstruct the remote sensing image to improve the quality of the compressed image in this paper, which contain the useful information of image and can restrain the noise. Then, remote sensing image quality influence factors are analyzed, and the evaluation parameters for quantitative evaluation are introduced. On this basis, the quality of the reconstructed images is evaluated and the different factors influence on the reconstruction is analyzed, providing meaningful referential data for enhancing the quality of remote sensing images. The experiment results show that evaluation results fit human visual feature, and the method proposed have good application value in the field of remote sensing image processing.

Feasibility study ASCS remote sensing/compliance determination system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Duggan, I. E.; Minter, T. C., Jr.; Moore, B. H.; Nosworthy, C. T.

1973-01-01

A short-term technical study was performed by the MSC Earth Observations Division to determine the feasibility of the proposed Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service Automatic Remote Sensing/Compliance Determination System. For the study, the term automatic was interpreted as applying to an automated remote-sensing system that includes data acquisition, processing, and management.

The application of remote sensing techniques to the study of ophiolites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, Shuhab D.; Mahmood, Khalid

2008-08-01

Satellite remote sensing methods are a powerful tool for detailed geologic analysis, especially in inaccessible regions of the earth's surface. Short-wave infrared (SWIR) bands are shown to provide spectral information bearing on the lithologic, structural, and geochemical character of rock bodies such as ophiolites, allowing for a more comprehensive assessment of the lithologies present, their stratigraphic relationships, and geochemical character. Most remote sensing data are widely available for little or no cost, along with user-friendly software for non-specialists. In this paper we review common remote sensing systems and methods that allow for the discrimination of solid rock (lithologic) components of ophiolite complexes and their structural relationships. Ophiolites are enigmatic rock bodies which associated with most, if not all, plate collision sutures. Ophiolites are ideal for remote sensing given their widely recognized diversity of lithologic types and structural relationships. Accordingly, as a basis for demonstrating the utility of remote sensing techniques, we briefly review typical ophiolites in the Tethyan tectonic belt. As a case study, we apply integrated remote sensing studies of a well-studied example, the Muslim Bagh ophiolite, located in Balochistan, western Pakistan. On this basis, we attempt to demonstrate how remote sensing data can validate and reconcile existing information obtained from field studies. The lithologic and geochemical diversity of Muslim Bagh are representative of Tethyan ophiolites. Despite it's remote location it has been extensively mapped and characterized by structural and geochemical studies, and is virtually free of vegetative cover. Moreover, integrating the remote sensing data with 'ground truth' information thus offers the potential of an improved template for interpreting remote sensing data sets of other ophiolites for which little or no field information is available.

Future of Land Remote Sensing: What is Needed

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goward, Samuel N.

2007-01-01

A viewgraph presentation describing the future of land remote sensing and the new technologies needed for clear views of the Earth is shown. The contents include: 1) Viewing the Earth; 2) Multi-Imagery; 3) May Missions and Sensors; 4) What is Needed; 5) Things to Think About; 6) Global Land Remote Sensing in Landsat 7 Era; 7) Seasonality; 8) Cloud Contamination; 9) NRC Decadal Study; 10) Atmospheric Attenuation; 11) Geo-Registration; 12) Orthorectification Required; 13) Band Registration with OLI; and 14) Things to Do. A viewgraph presentation describing the future of land remote sensing and the new technologies needed for clear views of the Earth is shown. The contents include: 1) Viewing the Earth; 2) Multi-Imagery; 3) May Missions and Sensors; 4) What is Needed; 5) Things to Think About; 6) Global Land Remote Sensing in Landsat 7 Era; 7) Seasonality; 8) Cloud Contamination; 9) NRC Decadal Study; 10) Atmospheric Attenuation; 11) Geo-Registration; 12) Orthorectification Required; 13) Band Registration with OLI; and 14) Things to Do.

75 FR 65304 - Advisory Committee on Commercial Remote Sensing (ACCRES); Request for Nominations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-22

... Commercial Remote Sensing (ACCRES); Request for Nominations AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric... Commercial Remote Sensing (ACCRES). SUMMARY: The Advisory Committee on Commercial Remote Sensing (ACCRES) was... Atmosphere, on matters relating to the U.S. commercial remote sensing industry and NOAA's activities to carry...

People, Places and Pixels: Remote Sensing in the Service of Society

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lulla, Kamlesh

2003-01-01

What is the role of Earth remote sensing and other geospatial technologies in our society? Recent global events have brought into focus the role of geospatial science and technology such as remote sensing, GIS, GPS in assisting the professionals who are responsible for operations such as rescue and recovery of sites after a disaster or a terrorist act. This paper reviews the use of recent remote sensing products from satellites such as IKONOS in these efforts. Aerial and satellite imagery used in land mine detection has been evaluated and the results of this evaluation will be discussed. Synopsis of current and future ISS Earth Remote Sensing capabilities will be provided. The role of future missions in humanitarian use of remote sensing will be explored.

Towards a Transferable UAV-Based Framework for River Hydromorphological Characterization

PubMed Central

González, Rocío Ballesteros; Leinster, Paul; Wright, Ros

2017-01-01

The multiple protocols that have been developed to characterize river hydromorphology, partly in response to legislative drivers such as the European Union Water Framework Directive (EU WFD), make the comparison of results obtained in different countries challenging. Recent studies have analyzed the comparability of existing methods, with remote sensing based approaches being proposed as a potential means of harmonizing hydromorphological characterization protocols. However, the resolution achieved by remote sensing products may not be sufficient to assess some of the key hydromorphological features that are required to allow an accurate characterization. Methodologies based on high resolution aerial photography taken from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have been proposed by several authors as potential approaches to overcome these limitations. Here, we explore the applicability of an existing UAV based framework for hydromorphological characterization to three different fluvial settings representing some of the distinct ecoregions defined by the WFD geographical intercalibration groups (GIGs). The framework is based on the automated recognition of hydromorphological features via tested and validated Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs). Results show that the framework is transferable to the Central-Baltic and Mediterranean GIGs with accuracies in feature identification above 70%. Accuracies of 50% are achieved when the framework is implemented in the Very Large Rivers GIG. The framework successfully identified vegetation, deep water, shallow water, riffles, side bars and shadows for the majority of the reaches. However, further algorithm development is required to ensure a wider range of features (e.g., chutes, structures and erosion) are accurately identified. This study also highlights the need to develop an objective and fit for purpose hydromorphological characterization framework to be adopted within all EU member states to facilitate comparison of results

Towards a Transferable UAV-Based Framework for River Hydromorphological Characterization.

PubMed

Rivas Casado, Mónica; González, Rocío Ballesteros; Ortega, José Fernando; Leinster, Paul; Wright, Ros

2017-09-26

The multiple protocols that have been developed to characterize river hydromorphology, partly in response to legislative drivers such as the European Union Water Framework Directive (EU WFD), make the comparison of results obtained in different countries challenging. Recent studies have analyzed the comparability of existing methods, with remote sensing based approaches being proposed as a potential means of harmonizing hydromorphological characterization protocols. However, the resolution achieved by remote sensing products may not be sufficient to assess some of the key hydromorphological features that are required to allow an accurate characterization. Methodologies based on high resolution aerial photography taken from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have been proposed by several authors as potential approaches to overcome these limitations. Here, we explore the applicability of an existing UAV based framework for hydromorphological characterization to three different fluvial settings representing some of the distinct ecoregions defined by the WFD geographical intercalibration groups (GIGs). The framework is based on the automated recognition of hydromorphological features via tested and validated Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs). Results show that the framework is transferable to the Central-Baltic and Mediterranean GIGs with accuracies in feature identification above 70%. Accuracies of 50% are achieved when the framework is implemented in the Very Large Rivers GIG. The framework successfully identified vegetation, deep water, shallow water, riffles, side bars and shadows for the majority of the reaches. However, further algorithm development is required to ensure a wider range of features (e.g., chutes, structures and erosion) are accurately identified. This study also highlights the need to develop an objective and fit for purpose hydromorphological characterization framework to be adopted within all EU member states to facilitate comparison of results.

Present and future development of remote sensing in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pan, H. R.; Jiang, J. S.; Hu, D. Y.; Wang, C. Y.

This paper summarizes the program that has been established during the past decade and the present situation in remote sensing techniques and applications in China. Special attention is given to the recent results that have been achieved in remote sensing applications, such as the successful applications of aerial photography and satellite images to a wide range of grassland surveys in Xinjians province, and to real time flood monitoring in the Tons-Tins Lake drainage basin in 1985, etc. The paper also touches upon the future trends for developing remote sensing in China.

Quantitative interpretation of Great Lakes remote sensing data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shook, D. F.; Salzman, J.; Svehla, R. A.; Gedney, R. T.

1980-01-01

The paper discusses the quantitative interpretation of Great Lakes remote sensing water quality data. Remote sensing using color information must take into account (1) the existence of many different organic and inorganic species throughout the Great Lakes, (2) the occurrence of a mixture of species in most locations, and (3) spatial variations in types and concentration of species. The radiative transfer model provides a potential method for an orderly analysis of remote sensing data and a physical basis for developing quantitative algorithms. Predictions and field measurements of volume reflectances are presented which show the advantage of using a radiative transfer model. Spectral absorptance and backscattering coefficients for two inorganic sediments are reported.

Geological remote sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bishop, Charlotte; Rivard, Benoit; de Souza Filho, Carlos; van der Meer, Freek

2018-02-01

Geology is defined as the 'study of the planet Earth - the materials of which it is made, the processes that act on these materials, the products formed, and the history of the planet and its life forms since its origin' (Bates and Jackson, 1976). Remote sensing has seen a number of variable definitions such as those by Sabins and Lillesand and Kiefer in their respective textbooks (Sabins, 1996; Lillesand and Kiefer, 2000). Floyd Sabins (Sabins, 1996) defined it as 'the science of acquiring, processing and interpreting images that record the interaction between electromagnetic energy and matter' while Lillesand and Kiefer (Lillesand and Kiefer, 2000) defined it as 'the science and art of obtaining information about an object, area, or phenomenon through the analysis of data acquired by a device that is not in contact with the object, area, or phenomenon under investigation'. Thus Geological Remote Sensing can be considered the study of, not just Earth given the breadth of work undertaken in planetary science, geological features and surfaces and their interaction with the electromagnetic spectrum using technology that is not in direct contact with the features of interest.

A NDVI assisted remote sensing image adaptive scale segmentation method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Hong; Shen, Jinxiang; Ma, Yanmei

2018-03-01

Multiscale segmentation of images can effectively form boundaries of different objects with different scales. However, for the remote sensing image which widely coverage with complicated ground objects, the number of suitable segmentation scales, and each of the scale size is still difficult to be accurately determined, which severely restricts the rapid information extraction of the remote sensing image. A great deal of experiments showed that the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) can effectively express the spectral characteristics of a variety of ground objects in remote sensing images. This paper presents a method using NDVI assisted adaptive segmentation of remote sensing images, which segment the local area by using NDVI similarity threshold to iteratively select segmentation scales. According to the different regions which consist of different targets, different segmentation scale boundaries could be created. The experimental results showed that the adaptive segmentation method based on NDVI can effectively create the objects boundaries for different ground objects of remote sensing images.

Feasibility study of a novel miniaturized spectral imaging system architecture in UAV surveillance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Shuyang; Zhou, Tao; Jia, Xiaodong; Cui, Hushan; Huang, Chengjun

2016-01-01

The spectral imaging technology is able to analysis the spectral and spatial geometric character of the target at the same time. To break through the limitation brought by the size, weight and cost of the traditional spectral imaging instrument, a miniaturized novel spectral imaging based on CMOS processing has been introduced in the market. This technology has enabled the possibility of applying spectral imaging in the UAV platform. In this paper, the relevant technology and the related possible applications have been presented to implement a quick, flexible and more detailed remote sensing system.

Remote sensing - A new view for public health

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morrison, D. R.; Barnes, C. M.; Fuller, C. E.

1973-01-01

It is shown that the technology of remote sensing can be of great importance to the field of public health. This possibility is based on the deepened understanding of the biologies and ecologies of the vector/organism/host interelationships of arthropod-, soil-, and water-borne diseases to result from the information that remote sensing can provide.

Multistage remote sensing: toward an annual national inventory

Treesearch

Raymond L. Czaplewski

1999-01-01

Remote sensing can improve efficiency of statistical information. Landsat data can identify and map a few broad categories of forest cover and land use. However, more-detailed information requires a sample of higher-resolution imagery, which costs less than field data but considerably more than Landsat data. A national remote sensing program would be a major...

Remote sensing fire and fuels in southern California

Treesearch

Philip Riggan; Lynn Wolden; Bob Tissell; David Weise; J. Coen

2011-01-01

Airborne remote sensing at infrared wavelengths has the potential to quantify large-fire properties related to energy release or intensity, residence time, fuel-consumption rate, rate of spread, and soil heating. Remote sensing at a high temporal rate can track fire-line outbreaks and acceleration and spotting ahead of a fire front. Yet infrared imagers and imaging...

The remote sensing image segmentation mean shift algorithm parallel processing based on MapReduce

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Xi; Zhou, Liqing

2015-12-01

With the development of satellite remote sensing technology and the remote sensing image data, traditional remote sensing image segmentation technology cannot meet the massive remote sensing image processing and storage requirements. This article put cloud computing and parallel computing technology in remote sensing image segmentation process, and build a cheap and efficient computer cluster system that uses parallel processing to achieve MeanShift algorithm of remote sensing image segmentation based on the MapReduce model, not only to ensure the quality of remote sensing image segmentation, improved split speed, and better meet the real-time requirements. The remote sensing image segmentation MeanShift algorithm parallel processing algorithm based on MapReduce shows certain significance and a realization of value.

The applicability of remote sensing to Earth biological problems. Part 2: The potential of remote sensing in pest management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Polhemus, J. T.

1980-01-01

Five troublesome insect pest groups were chosen for study. These represent a broad spectrum of life cycles, ecological indicators, pest management strategies, and remote sensing requirements. Background data, and field study results for each of these subjects is discussed for each insect group. Specific groups studied include tsetse flies, locusts, western rangeland grasshoppers, range caterpillars, and mosquitoes. It is concluded that remote sensing methods are aplicable to the pest management of the insect groups studied.

Monitoring water quality by remote sensing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brown, R. L. (Principal Investigator)

1977-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. A limited study was conducted to determine the applicability of remote sensing for evaluating water quality conditions in the San Francisco Bay and delta. Considerable supporting data were available for the study area from other than overflight sources, but short-term temporal and spatial variability precluded their use. The study results were not sufficient to shed much light on the subject, but it did appear that, with the present state of the art in image analysis and the large amount of ground truth needed, remote sensing has only limited application in monitoring water quality.

Comparison of UAV and WorldView-2 imagery for mapping leaf area index of mangrove forest

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Jinyan; Wang, Le; Li, Xiaojuan; Gong, Huili; Shi, Chen; Zhong, Ruofei; Liu, Xiaomeng

2017-09-01

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) remote sensing has opened the door to new sources of data to effectively characterize vegetation metrics at very high spatial resolution and at flexible revisit frequencies. Successful estimation of the leaf area index (LAI) in precision agriculture with a UAV image has been reported in several studies. However, in most forests, the challenges associated with the interference from a complex background and a variety of vegetation species have hindered research using UAV images. To the best of our knowledge, very few studies have mapped the forest LAI with a UAV image. In addition, the drawbacks and advantages of estimating the forest LAI with UAV and satellite images at high spatial resolution remain a knowledge gap in existing literature. Therefore, this paper aims to map LAI in a mangrove forest with a complex background and a variety of vegetation species using a UAV image and compare it with a WorldView-2 image (WV2). In this study, three representative NDVIs, average NDVI (AvNDVI), vegetated specific NDVI (VsNDVI), and scaled NDVI (ScNDVI), were acquired with UAV and WV2 to predict the plot level (10 × 10 m) LAI. The results showed that AvNDVI achieved the highest accuracy for WV2 (R2 = 0.778, RMSE = 0.424), whereas ScNDVI obtained the optimal accuracy for UAV (R2 = 0.817, RMSE = 0.423). In addition, an overall comparison results of the WV2 and UAV derived LAIs indicated that UAV obtained a better accuracy than WV2 in the plots that were covered with homogeneous mangrove species or in the low LAI plots, which was because UAV can effectively eliminate the influence from the background and the vegetation species owing to its high spatial resolution. However, WV2 obtained a slightly higher accuracy than UAV in the plots covered with a variety of mangrove species, which was because the UAV sensor provides a negative spectral response function(SRF) than WV2 in terms of the mangrove LAI estimation.

REMOTE SENSING FOR ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE MONITORING

EPA Science Inventory

I. Remote Sensing Basics
A. The electromagnetic spectrum demonstrates what we can see both in the visible and beyond the visible part of the spectrum through the use of various types of sensors.
B. Resolution refers to what a remote sensor can see and how often.
1. Sp...

FOREWORD: Satellite Remote Sensing Beyond 2015

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tucker, Compton J.

2017-01-01

Satellite remote sensing has progressed tremendously since the first Landsat was launched on June 23, 1972. Since the 1970s, satellite remote sensing and associated airborne and in situ measurements have resulted in vital and indispensable observations for understanding our planet through time. These observations have also led to dramatic improvements in numerical simulation models of the coupled atmosphere-land-ocean systems at increasing accuracies and predictive capability. The same observations document the Earth's climate and are driving the consensus that Homo sapiens is changing our climate through greenhouse gas emissions. These accomplishments are the combined work of many scientists from many countries and a dedicated cadre of engineers who build the instruments and satellites that collect Earth observation data from satellites, all working toward the goal of improving our understanding of the Earth. This edition of the Remote Sensing Handbook (Vol. I, II, and III) is a compendium of information for many research areas of our Planet that have contributed to our substantial progress since the 1970s. Remote sensing community is now using multiple sources of satellite and in situ data to advance our studies, what ever they might be. In the following paragraphs, I will illustrate how valuable and pivotal role satellite remote sensing has played in climate system study over last five decades, The Chapters in the Remote Sensing Handbook (Vol. I, II, and III) provides many other specific studies on land, water, and other applications using EO data of last five decades, The Landsat system of Earth-observing satellites has led the way in pioneering sustained observations of our planet. From 1972 to the present, at least one and sometimes two Landsat satellites have been in operation. Starting with the launch of the first NOAA-NASA Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellites NOAA-6 in 1978, improved imaging of land, clouds, and oceans and atmospheric soundings of

What is a picture worth? A history of remote sensing

USGS Publications Warehouse

Moore, Gerald K.

1979-01-01

Remote sensing is the use of electromagnetic energy to measure the physical properties of distant objects. It includes photography and geophysical surveying as well as newer techniques that use other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. The history of remote sensing begins with photography. The origin of other types of remote sensing can be traced to World War II, with the development of radar, sonar, and thermal infrared detection systems. Since the 1960s, sensors have been designed to operate in virtually all of the electromagnetic spectrum. Today a wide variety of remote sensing instruments are available for use in hydrological studies; satellite data, such as Skylab photographs and Landsat images are particularly suitable for regional problems and studies. Planned future satellites will provide a ground resolution of 10–80 m. Remote sensing is currently used for hydrological applications in most countries of the world. The range of applications includes groundwater exploration determination of physical water quality, snowfield mapping, flood-inundation delineation, and making inventories of irrigated land. The use of remote sensing commonly results in considerable hydrological information at minimal cost. This information can be used to speed-up the development of water resources, to improve management practices, and to monitor environmental problems.

Remote Sensing Laboratory - RSL

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

2014-11-06

One of the primary resources supporting homeland security is the Remote Sensing Laboratory, or RSL. The Laboratory creates advanced technologies for emergency response operations, radiological incident response, and other remote sensing activities. RSL emergency response teams are on call 24-hours a day, and maintain the capability to deploy domestically and internationally in response to threats involving the loss, theft, or release of nuclear or radioactive material. Such incidents might include Nuclear Power Plant accidents, terrorist incidents involving nuclear or radiological materials, NASA launches, and transportation accidents involving nuclear materials. Working with the US Department of Homeland Security, RSL personnel equip,more » maintain, and conduct training on the mobile detection deployment unit, to provide nuclear radiological security at major national events such as the super bowl, the Indianapolis 500, New Year's Eve celebrations, presidential inaugurations, international meetings and conferences, just about any event where large numbers of people will gather.« less

15 CFR 960.12 - Data policy for remote sensing space systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Data policy for remote sensing space... REGULATIONS OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SERVICE LICENSING OF PRIVATE REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS Licenses § 960.12 Data policy for remote sensing space systems. (a) In accordance with the Act, if the U.S. Government...

15 CFR 960.12 - Data policy for remote sensing space systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Data policy for remote sensing space... REGULATIONS OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SERVICE LICENSING OF PRIVATE REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS Licenses § 960.12 Data policy for remote sensing space systems. (a) In accordance with the Act, if the U.S. Government...

15 CFR 960.12 - Data policy for remote sensing space systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Data policy for remote sensing space... REGULATIONS OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SERVICE LICENSING OF PRIVATE REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS Licenses § 960.12 Data policy for remote sensing space systems. (a) In accordance with the Act, if the U.S. Government...

15 CFR 960.12 - Data policy for remote sensing space systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Data policy for remote sensing space... REGULATIONS OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SERVICE LICENSING OF PRIVATE REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS Licenses § 960.12 Data policy for remote sensing space systems. (a) In accordance with the Act, if the U.S. Government...

15 CFR 960.12 - Data policy for remote sensing space systems.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 3 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Data policy for remote sensing space... REGULATIONS OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL DATA SERVICE LICENSING OF PRIVATE REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS Licenses § 960.12 Data policy for remote sensing space systems. (a) In accordance with the Act, if the U.S. Government...

Applying narrowband remote-sensing reflectance models to wideband data.

PubMed

Lee, Zhongping

2009-06-10

Remote sensing of coastal and inland waters requires sensors to have a high spatial resolution to cover the spatial variation of biogeochemical properties in fine scales. High spatial-resolution sensors, however, are usually equipped with spectral bands that are wide in bandwidth (50 nm or wider). In this study, based on numerical simulations of hyperspectral remote-sensing reflectance of optically-deep waters, and using Landsat band specifics as an example, the impact of a wide spectral channel on remote sensing is analyzed. It is found that simple adoption of a narrowband model may result in >20% underestimation in calculated remote-sensing reflectance, and inversely may result in >20% overestimation in inverted absorption coefficients even under perfect conditions, although smaller (approximately 5%) uncertainties are found for higher absorbing waters. These results provide a cautious note, but also a justification for turbid coastal waters, on applying narrowband models to wideband data.

Concept for Classifying Facade Elements Based on Material, Geometry and Thermal Radiation Using Multimodal Uav Remote Sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ilehag, R.; Schenk, A.; Hinz, S.

2017-08-01

This paper presents a concept for classification of facade elements, based on the material and the geometry of the elements in addition to the thermal radiation of the facade with the usage of a multimodal Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) system. Once the concept is finalized and functional, the workflow can be used for energy demand estimations for buildings by exploiting existing methods for estimation of heat transfer coefficient and the transmitted heat loss. The multimodal system consists of a thermal, a hyperspectral and an optical sensor, which can be operational with a UAV. While dealing with sensors that operate in different spectra and have different technical specifications, such as the radiometric and the geometric resolution, the challenges that are faced are presented. Addressed are the different approaches of data fusion, such as image registration, generation of 3D models by performing image matching and the means for classification based on either the geometry of the object or the pixel values. As a first step towards realizing the concept, the result from a geometric calibration with a designed multimodal calibration pattern is presented.

Risk profiling of schistosomiasis using remote sensing: approaches, challenges and outlook.

PubMed

Walz, Yvonne; Wegmann, Martin; Dech, Stefan; Raso, Giovanna; Utzinger, Jürg

2015-03-17

Schistosomiasis is a water-based disease that affects an estimated 250 million people, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa. The transmission of schistosomiasis is spatially and temporally restricted to freshwater bodies that contain schistosome cercariae released from specific snails that act as intermediate hosts. Our objective was to assess the contribution of remote sensing applications and to identify remaining challenges in its optimal application for schistosomiasis risk profiling in order to support public health authorities to better target control interventions. We reviewed the literature (i) to deepen our understanding of the ecology and the epidemiology of schistosomiasis, placing particular emphasis on remote sensing; and (ii) to fill an identified gap, namely interdisciplinary research that bridges different strands of scientific inquiry to enhance spatially explicit risk profiling. As a first step, we reviewed key factors that govern schistosomiasis risk. Secondly, we examined remote sensing data and variables that have been used for risk profiling of schistosomiasis. Thirdly, the linkage between the ecological consequence of environmental conditions and the respective measure of remote sensing data were synthesised. We found that the potential of remote sensing data for spatial risk profiling of schistosomiasis is - in principle - far greater than explored thus far. Importantly though, the application of remote sensing data requires a tailored approach that must be optimised by selecting specific remote sensing variables, considering the appropriate scale of observation and modelling within ecozones. Interestingly, prior studies that linked prevalence of Schistosoma infection to remotely sensed data did not reflect that there is a spatial gap between the parasite and intermediate host snail habitats where disease transmission occurs, and the location (community or school) where prevalence measures are usually derived from. Our findings imply that the