Evaluating the feasibility of multitemporal hyperspectral remote sensing for monitoring bioremediation

In recent years, several studies focused on the detection of hydrocarbon pollution in the environment using hyperspectral remote sensing. Particularly the indirect detection of hydrocarbon pollution, using vegetation reflectance in the red edge region, has been studied extensively. Bioremediation is one of the methods that can be applied to clean up polluted sites. So far, there have been no studies on monitoring of bioremediation using (hyperspectral) remote sensing. This study evaluates the feasibility of hyperspectral remote sensing for monitoring the effect of bioremediation over time. Benzene leakage at connection points along a pipeline was monitored by comparing the red edge position (REP) in 2005 and 2008 using HyMap airborne hyperspectral images. REP values were normalized in order to enhance local variations caused by a change in benzene concentrations. 11 out of 17 locations were classified correctly as remediated, still polluted, or still clean, with a total accuracy of 65%. When only polluted locations that were remediated were taken into account, the (user's) accuracy was 71%.     

Potential of Detecting the Sulfur Dioxide Stress on Landscape Plants in Spectral Reflectance Data

Sulfur dioxide (SO₂) exhibits a powerful implication on the air condition and responsible for increasing the acidity of rainfall which plays negative effects on plant growth. It is a big problem to quantitatively access the stress degrees of sulfur dioxide on landscape plants. This study aims to find a non-destructive way to detect the degrees of SO₂ stress by using the spectral reflectance data. Five different landscape plants were selected and a simulated SO₂ stress environment by using fumigation box was built in this experiment. Landscape plants were grown on at this simulated SO₂ environment, and the leaf reflectance, chlorophyll and sulfur concentration were measured at 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 h respectively. The spectral, chlorophyll response of five different plants were examined and the red edge position (REP) shift obtained from the reflectance were used to evaluate the SO₂ stress degrees at this paper. The results showed leaf chlorophyll content generally decreased and leaf sulfur content generally increased of all of these five landscape plants as though the chlorophyll and sulfur content disturbing during the whole stress time. However, compared with the sulfur content changed in leaves, chlorophyll content did not significantly changed when suffering from SO₂. The shift of REP performed well to indicate the severity of SO₂ fumigation stress and different species showed the different REP shift. The determined coefficient R² of REP shift and the relative changed sulfur content in leaves can up to 0.85. And the results also indicated that the different species maintained different resistance to SO₂.     

Evaluating the capabilities of Sentinel-2 for quantitative estimation of biophysical variables in vegetation

The red edge position (REP) in the vegetation spectral reflectance is a surrogate measure of vegetation chlorophyll content, and hence can be used to monitor the health and function of vegetation. The Multi-Spectral Instrument (MSI) aboard the future ESA Sentinel-2 (S-2) satellite will provide the opportunity for estimation of the REP at much higher spatial resolution (20 m) than has been previously possible with spaceborne sensors such as Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) aboard ENVISAT. This study aims to evaluate the potential of S-2 MSI sensor for estimation of canopy chlorophyll content, leaf area index (LAI) and leaf chlorophyll concentration (LCC) using data from multiple field campaigns. Included in the assessed field campaigns are results from SEN3Exp in Barrax, Spain composed of 35 elementary sampling units (ESUs) of LCC and LAI which have been assessed for correlation with simulated MSI data using a CASI airborne imaging spectrometer. Analysis also presents results from SicilyS2EVAL, a campaign consisting of 25 ESUs in Sicily, Italy supported by a simultaneous Specim Aisa-Eagle data acquisition. In addition, these results were compared to outputs from the PROSAIL model for similar values of biophysical variables in the ESUs. The paper in turn assessed the scope of S-2 for retrieval of biophysical variables using these combined datasets through investigating the performance of the relevant Vegetation Indices (VIs) as well as presenting the novel Inverted Red-Edge Chlorophyll Index (IRECI) and Sentinel-2 Red-Edge Position (S2REP). Results indicated significant relationships between both canopy chlorophyll content and LAI for simulated MSI data using IRECI or the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) while S2REP and the MERIS Terrestrial Chlorophyll Index (MTCI) were found to have the strongest correlation for retrieval of LCC.     

Microwave response to broad leaf vegetation (Spinach) and vegetation covered moist soil for remote sensing

Soil moisture is one of the most important parameter which controls the growth of the vegetation. For accurate data and sufficient information to increase food production, remote sensing technique is highly useful. This paper deals with the bistatic microwave response of spinach and spinach covered soil moisture at various growth stages on X-band if the frequency spectrum. The microwave response of spinach in different stages of growth have been studied in terms of scattering co-efficient (σ^°). The look angle effect on σ^° is observed for like polarization i.e. (VV-and-HH) only. A linear regression analysis has been done between the vegetation covered soil moisture and scattering co-efficient. It provides an idea that VV-polarization is more sensitive than HH-polarizalion for vegetation covered soil moisture and best suitable look angle for observing vegetation covered soil moisture is less than 40°(θ<40°).     

一个植被双向反射模式的反演控制试验

利用地面遥感观测数据,对一个浑浊介质假定下的植被双向反射模式,增加了对太阳漫射辐射因素处理,在可见光波段上,进行了系列模式反演试验。这些试验有助于完善植被双向反射模式中物理过程的描述,了解模式反演过程的控制和选择合适遥感观测数据进行模式反演。分析试验结果发现：（１） 对 Ｌ Ａ Ｉ进行初值预估有利于获得较好的植被双向反射模式反演结果。（２） 加入植被对太阳漫射辐射的反射过程描述,可以使植被双向反射模式的反演结果更加合理。（３） 使用在太阳天顶角不太大（ ＜ ４５°） 和太阳方位角偏离１８０°不多（ ＜ ４５°） 观测条件下得到的遥感数据,可以使植被双向反射模式的反演结果较好。（４） 在３１°—６１°的太阳天顶角范围和１３６°—２５８°的太阳方位角范围内,多角度观测使太阳天顶角和方位角因素对 Ｌ Ａ Ｉ反演结果的影响不显著。（５） 当太阳漫射辐射的份额不大时,对 Ｌ Ａ Ｉ反演结果的影响不显著。如果只针对 Ｌ Ａ Ｉ,那么对反演植被双向反射模式所应用的地面遥感数据可以不进行大气校正处理,这样的结果虽然是从对地面遥感数据的处理中获得的,仍然对卫星遥感的观测时段选择和卫星遥感数据的选取和分析有一定的价值。     

Evaluating the impact of red-edge band from Rapideye image for classifying insect defoliation levels

The prospect of regular assessments of insect defoliation using remote sensing technologies has increased in recent years through advances in the understanding of the spectral reflectance properties of vegetation. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the ability of the red edge channel of Rapideye imagery to discriminate different levels of insect defoliation in an African savanna by comparing the results of obtained from two classifiers. Random Forest and Support vector machine classification algorithms were applied using different sets of spectral analysis involving the red edge band. Results show that the integration of information from red edge increases classification accuracy of insect defoliation levels in all analysis performed in the study. For instance, when all the 5 bands of Rapideye imagery were used for classification, the overall accuracies increases about 19% and 21% for SVM and RF, respectively, as opposed to when the red edge channel was excluded. We also found out that the normalized difference red-edge index yielded a better accuracy result than normalized difference vegetation index. We conclude that the red-edge channel of relatively affordable and readily available high-resolution multispectral satellite data such as Rapideye has the potential to considerably improve insect defoliation classification especially in sub-Saharan Africa where data availability is limited.     

联合GEE与多源遥感数据的黑龙江流域沼泽湿地信息提取

湿地是地球上最重要的生态系统之一,在维持全球生态环境安全等方面发挥着举足轻重的作用.由于湿地独特的水文特征,传统的湿地监测需要耗费大量的人力和财力,对于大尺度的湿地信息提取更是困难重重.随着大数据和云计算的兴起,为大尺度和长时间序列的空间数据处理提供了契机.本文基于Google Earth Engine(GEE)云平台...     

IEU-Net高分辨率遥感影像房屋建筑物提取

房屋建筑物作为人类活动的主要场所,快速准确地将其从高分辨率遥感影像中提取出来,对促进遥感信息在防灾减灾、城镇管理等方面的应用具有重要意义。本文基于深度学习,提出了高分辨率遥感影像房屋建筑物像素级精确提取方法。首先,针对样本图像边缘像素特征不足现象,以U-Net模型为基础提出IEU-Net模型,设计了全新的忽略边缘交叉熵函数IELoss并将其作为损失函数,另外添加Dropout和BN层在避免过拟合的同时提高模型训练速度和鲁棒性。其次,为解决模型特征丰富度有限的问题,引入形态学建筑物指数MBI,与遥感影像RGB波段一同参与到模型的分类过程。最后,在模型预测时与IELoss相对应采用忽略边缘预测策略从而获得最佳建筑物提取结果。实验对比分析表明：本文方法能有效克服样本边缘像素特征不足问题并抑制道路、建筑物阴影对结果的影响,提升高分辨率遥感影像中房屋建筑物的提取精度。     

Analysing spatio-temporal footprints of urbanization on environment of Surat city using satellite-derived bio-physical parameters

Our study examines the relationships among various environmental variables in Surat city using remote sensing. Landsat Thematic Mapper satellite data were used in conjugation with geospatial techniques to study urbanization and correlation among satellite-derived biophysical parameters namely, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), normalized difference built-up index (NDBI), normalized difference water index (NDWI), normalized difference bareness index (NDBaI) and land surface temperature (LST). A modified NDWI (MNDWI) was used for extracting areas under water. Land use/land cover classification was performed using hierarchical decision tree classification technique using ERDAS IMAGINE Expert classifier with an accuracy of 90.4% for 1990 and 85% for 2009. It was found that city has expanded over 42.75 sq.km within two decades. Built-up, fallow and sediment land use classes exhibited high dynamics with increase of nearly 200% and 50% and decrease of 55% respectively from 1990 to 2009. Vegetation and water classes were less dynamic with 20% decrease and 15% increase. The transformation of land parcels from vegetation to built-up, vegetation to fallow and fallow to built-up has resulted in increase of LST by 5.5 ± 2.6°C, 6.7 ± 3°C and 3.5 ± 2.9°C, respectively.     

Representation of Uncertainty and Integration of PGIS-based Grazing Intensity Maps Using Evidential Belief Functions

In a project to classify livestock grazing intensity using participatory geographic information systems (PGIS), we encountered the problem of how to synthesize PGIS-based maps of livestock grazing intensity that were prepared separately by local experts. We investigated the utility of evidential belief functions (EBFs) and Dempster's rule of combination to represent classification uncertainty and integrate the PGIS-based grazing intensity maps. These maps were used as individual sets of evidence in the application of EBFs to evaluate the proposition that " This area or pixel belongs to the high, medium, or low grazing intensity class because the local expert(s) says (say) so ". The class-area-weighted averages of EBFs based on each of the PGIS-based maps show that the lowest degree of classification uncertainty is associated with maps in which "vegetation species" was used as the mapping criterion. This criterion, together with local landscape attributes of livestock use may be considered as an appropriate standard measure for grazing intensity. The maps of integrated EBFs of grazing intensity show that classification uncertainty is high when the local experts apply at least two mapping criteria together. This study demonstrates the usefulness of EBFs to represent classification uncertainty and the possibility to use the EBF values in identifying and using criteria for PGIS-based mapping of livestock grazing intensity.     

MERIS and the red-edge position

The Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) is a payload component of Envisat-1. MERIS will be operated over land with a standard 15 band setting acquiring images with a 300 m spatial resolution. The red-edge position (REP) is a promising variable for deriving foliar chlorophyll concentration, which plays an important role in ecosystem processes. The objectives of this paper are: (1) to study which factors effect the REP of vegetation, (2) to study whether this REP can be derived from the MERIS standard band setting and (3) to show what REP represents at the scale of MERIS data. Two different data sets were explored for simulating the REP using MERIS bands: (1) simulated data using reflectance models and (2) airborne reflectance spectra of an agricultural area obtained by the airborne visible-infrared imaging spectrometer (AVIRIS). A “linear method”, assuming a straight slope of the reflectance spectrum around the midpoint of the slope, was a robust method for determining the REP and the MERIS bands at 665, 708.75, 753.75 and 778.75 nm could be used for applying the “linear method” for REP estimation. Results of the translation to the scale of MERIS data were very promising for applying MERIS at, for instance, the ecosystem level.     

Driving forces of grassland vegetation changes in Chen Barag Banner,Inner Mongolia

ABSTRACT

Inner Mongolia is an important ecological zone of northern China and 67% of its land area is grassland. This ecologically fragile region has experienced significant vegetation degradation during the last decades. Although the spatial extents and rates of vegetation change have previously been characterized through various remote sensing and GIS studies, the underlying driving factors of vegetation changes are still not well understood. In this study, we first used time-series MODIS NDVI data from 2000 to 2016 to characterize the temporal trend of vegetation changes. These vegetation change trends were compared with climate and socioeconomic variables to determine the potential drivers. We used a set of statistical methods, including multiple linear regression (MLR), spatial correlation analysis, and partial least squares (PLS) regression analyzes, to quantify the spatial distribution of the driving forces and their relative importance to vegetation changes. Results show that the main driving factors and their impact magnitude (weight) are in the order of human activities (r = -0.785, p < 0.01, VIP = 1.37), precipitation (r = 0.541, p < 0.05, VIP = 0.89), temperature (r = -0.319, p > 0.05 VIP = 0.59). The area affected by human activities was 10.57%. Specific human activities, such as coal mining and grazing were negatively associated with vegetation cover, while eco-engineering projects had positive impacts. This study provided thorough quantification of driving forces of vegetation change and enhanced our understanding of their interactions. Our integrated geospatial-statistical approach is particularly important for sustainable development of ecosystem balance in Chen Barag Banner and other areas facing similar challenges.     

矿区植被重金属胁迫高光谱分辨率数据分析

研究矿区植被重金属胁迫,植被反射光谱测量必不可少。用成像光谱仪野外测试江西德兴铜矿区典型植被的冠层反射波谱曲线,利用导数光谱评价植被“红边”位置。分析得知,植被红边“蓝移”,最大“蓝移”达11nm。根据红边位置与叶绿素含量的正相关关系,并结合铜矿区地质、地貌特点以及开采情况,初步断定铜矿区植被主要受到重金属胁迫而且胁迫程度与植被冠层重金属含量也呈正相关关系。这可作为高光谱分辨率遥感技术在矿区植被修复方面的决策支持和参考依据。     

用卫星高光谱数据提取德兴铜矿区植被污染信息

在深入分析研究德兴铜矿矿区植被光谱特征的基础上,利用美国EO-1卫星Hyperion高光谱数据,通过反演表征植物生理状态的光谱特征参数(红边位置和最大吸收深度)变异,提取与污染相关的信息,获取了矿山植被污染生态效应概况,为矿山污染的诊断和监测提供新技术和知识支撑。     

针叶林冠层热点及多角度无人机遥感观测及特征分析

多角度遥感观测是研究植被冠层BRDF (Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function)特性的重要手段,但目前对森林冠层进行连续间隔采样的多角度遥感观测及数据较少,热点方向的观测尤为缺乏。本研究基于无人机多角度高光谱成像系统,在主平面上对针叶林冠层以等角度连续间隔采样进行多角度观测,获取了主平面上多角度(包括热点和暗点)高光谱影像,并将观测结果与四尺度几何光学模型模拟结果进行对比分析。多角度观测获取的植被冠层反射率呈现出典型的植被方向反射特征,后向大部分角度观测的冠层反射率高于前向,在热点处出现峰值,在暗点附近方向出现最低值,观测天顶角VZA (View Zenith Angle)较大时表现出明显的"碗边效应"。结果表明:(1)观测的针叶林冠层反射率及BRDF特性与四尺度模型模拟基本一致,但红光波段模拟的热点反射率稍低于观测,前向观测VZA较大时模拟与观测结果差异稍大;(2)冠层结构及叶片光学特性的差异会导致观测到的BRDF特征不同;(3)观测的针叶林冠层BRDF呈现明显的光谱效应,不同波段呈现的各向异性特性不同,红光波段各向异性最强,近红外波段最弱;(4) BRDF的光谱效应差异导致观测到的植被指数也表现出各向异性,NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index)、PRI (Photochemical Reflectance Index)和MTCI(MERIS Terrestrial Chlorophyll Index)在热点方向最低,EVI (Enhanced Vegetation Index)在热点方向最高。本研究中无人机多角度成像观测提供的角度和高光谱信息,尤其是热点和暗点信息,在地物识别及分类、植被冠层结构反演及碳循环关键参数获取等研究方面具有较好的应用前景,在其它地物反射或热辐射等方向性特性研究中也具有较大的潜力。     

Monitoring grass nutrients and biomass as indicators of rangeland quality and quantity using random forest modelling and WorldView-2 data

Land use and climate change could have huge impacts on food security and the health of various ecosystems. Leaf nitrogen (N) and above-ground biomass are some of the key factors limiting agricultural production and ecosystem functioning. Leaf N and biomass can be used as indicators of rangeland quality and quantity. Conventional methods for assessing these vegetation parameters at landscape scale level are time consuming and tedious. Remote sensing provides a bird-eye view of the landscape, which creates an opportunity to assess these vegetation parameters over wider rangeland areas. Estimation of leaf N has been successful during peak productivity or high biomass and limited studies estimated leaf N in dry season. The estimation of above-ground biomass has been hindered by the signal saturation problems using conventional vegetation indices. The objective of this study is to monitor leaf N and above-ground biomass as an indicator of rangeland quality and quantity using WorldView-2 satellite images and random forest technique in the north-eastern part of South Africa. Series of field work to collect samples for leaf N and biomass were undertaken in March 2013, April or May 2012 (end of wet season) and July 2012 (dry season). Several conventional and red edge based vegetation indices were computed. Overall results indicate that random forest and vegetation indices explained over 89% of leaf N concentrations for grass and trees, and less than 89% for all the years of assessment. The red edge based vegetation indices were among the important variables for predicting leaf N. For the biomass, random forest model explained over 84% of biomass variation in all years, and visible bands including red edge based vegetation indices were found to be important. The study demonstrated that leaf N could be monitored using high spatial resolution with the red edge band capability, and is important for rangeland assessment and monitoring.     

A simplified urban-extent algorithm to characterize surface urban heat islands on a global scale and examine vegetation control on their spatiotemporal variability

We develop a new algorithm, the simplified urban-extent (SUE) algorithm, to estimate the surface urban heat island (UHI) intensity at a global scale. We implement the SUE algorithm on the Google Earth Engine platform using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) images to calculate the UHI intensity for over 9500 urban clusters using over 15 years of data, making this one of the most comprehensive characterizations of the surface UHI to date. The results from this algorithm are validated against previous multi-city studies to demonstrate the suitability of the method. The dataset created is then filtered for elevation differentials and percentage of urban area and used to estimate the diurnal, monthly, and long-term variability in the surface UHI in different climate zones. The global mean surface UHI intensity is 0.85 °C during daytime and 0.55 °C at night. Cities in arid climate show distinct diurnal and seasonal patterns, with higher surface UHI during nighttime (compared to daytime) and two peaks throughout the year. The diurnal variability in surface UHI is highest for equatorial climate zone (0.88 °C) and lowest for arid zone (0.53 °C). The seasonality is highest in the snow climate zone and lowest for equatorial climate zone. While investigating the change in the surface UHI over a decade and a half, we find a consistent increase in the daytime surface UHI in the urban clusters of the warm temperate climate zone (0.04 °C/decade) and snow climate zone (0.05 °C/decade). Only arid climate zones show a statistically significant increase in the nighttime surface UHI intensity (0.03 °C/decade). Globally, the change is mainly seen during the daytime (0.03 °C/decade). Finally, the importance of vegetation differential between urban and rural areas on the spatiotemporal variability is examined. Vegetation has a strong control on the seasonal variability of the surface UHI and may also partly control the long-term variability. The complete UHI data are available through this website (https://yceo.yale.edu/research/global-surface-uhi-explorer) and allows the user to query the UHI of urban clusters using a simple interface.     

Optimization of spectral indices and long-term separability analysis for classification of cereal crops using multi-spectral RapidEye imagery

Crop monitoring using remotely sensed image data provides valuable input for a large variety of applications in environmental and agricultural research. However, method development for discrimination between spectrally highly similar crop species remains a challenge in remote sensing. Calculation of vegetation indices is a frequently applied option to amplify the most distinctive parts of a spectrum. Since no vegetation index exist, that is universally best-performing, a method is presented that finds an index that is optimized for the classification of a specific satellite data set to separate two cereal crop types. The η² (eta-squared) measure of association – presented as novel spectral separability indicator – was used for the evaluation of the numerous tested indices. The approach is first applied on a RapidEye satellite image for the separation of winter wheat and winter barley in a Central German test site. The determined optimized index allows a more accurate classification (97%) than several well-established vegetation indices like NDVI and EVI (<87%). Furthermore, the approach was applied on a RapidEye multi-spectral image time series covering the years 2010–2014. The optimized index for the spectral separation of winter barley and winter wheat for each acquisition date was calculated and its ability to distinct the two classes was assessed. The results indicate that the calculated optimized indices perform better than the standard indices for most seasonal parts of the time series. The red edge spectral region proved to be of high significance for crop classification. Additionally, a time frame of best spectral separability of wheat and barley could be detected in early to mid-summer.     

Land use intensity trajectories on Amazonian pastures derived from Landsat time series

Monitoring changes in land use intensity of grazing systems in the Amazon is an important prerequisite to study the complex political and socio-economic forces driving Amazonian deforestation. Remote sensing offers the potential to map pasture vegetation over large areas, but mapping pasture conditions consistently through time is not a trivial task because of seasonal changes associated with phenology and data gaps from clouds and cloud shadows. In this study, we tested spectral-temporal metrics derived from intra-annual Landsat time series to distinguish between grass-dominated and woody pastures. The abundance of woody vegetation on pastures is an indicator for management intensity, since the duration and intensity of land use steer secondary succession rates, apart from climate and soil conditions. We used the developed Landsat-based metrics to analyze pasture intensity trajectories between 1985 and 2012 in Novo Progresso, Brazil, finding that woody vegetation cover generally decreased after four to ten years of grazing activity. Pastures established in the 80s and early 90s showed a higher fraction of woody vegetation during their initial land use history than pastures established in the early 2000s. Historic intensity trajectories suggested a trend towards more intensive land use in the last decade, which aligns well with regional environmental policies and market dynamics. This study demonstrates the potential of dense Landsat time series to monitor land-use intensification on Amazonian pastures.     

An effective Building Neighborhood Green Index model for measuring urban green space

Urban green space forms an integral part of urban ecosystems. Quantifying urban green space is of substantial importance for urban planning and development. Considering the drawbacks of previous urban green space index models, which established either through a grid method or green distribution, and the difficulty of the validation process of earlier urban green space index models, this study exploits the advantages of multisource high-resolution remote sensing data to establish a Building Neighborhood Green Index (BNGI) model. The model which analyzes the spatial configuration of built-up areas and the vegetation is based on the building-oriented method and considers four parameters – Green Index (GI), proximity to green, building sparsity, and building height. Comparing BNGI with GI in different types of characteristic building regions, it was found that BNGI evaluates urban green space more sensitively. It was also found that high-rise low-sparsity area has a lower mean value of BNGI (0.56) as compared with that of low-rise low-sparsity neighborhood (0.62), whereas mean GI (0.24) is equal for both neighborhoods. Taking characteristics of urban building and green types into consideration, BNGI model can be effectively used in many fields such as land suitability analysis and urban planning.