Yield estimation of summer crops grown in a mixed cropping area,a spectral growth curve profile approach

Estimation of crop production in advance of the harvest has been an intensively researched field in agriculture. Spectral parameters derived from the spectral growth profile being indicator of growth and development characteristics of the crop have a direct utility in crop-yield modeling. The present study is undertaken in a mixed cropping area of Karveer taluka, Kolhapur district, Maharashtra, to assess feasibility of multi-date moderately coarse WiFS data in developing spectral growth curves following Badhwar model (1980) for summer groundnut and paddy. The analysis highlighted potential of moderately coarse resolution WiFS data in discriminating the crops grown in fragmented conditions, provided detailed and adequate ground truth is used. The regression models using spectral parameters explained 94 % variation in paddy yield. However, model using ground information as peak LAI in addition to spectral variables, could explain 91 % variation in groundnut yield; thus for prediction of low-yielding and poorly managed crop a convergent model is essential. Vegetative growth rate during the pre-heading phase and total growing season absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (APAR) indicated by the area under the curve are the main predictors.     

Analysis of cropping pattern changes in Bathinda district,Punjab

A study was conducted in the Bathinda district of Punjab state for mapping the cropping pattern and crop rotation, monitoring long term changes in cropping pattern by using the satellite based remote sensing data along other spatial and non-spatial collateral data. Multi-date IRS LISS I and IRS WiFS sensor data have been used for this study. Cropping pattern maps and crop rotation maps were generated for the years 1988-89 and 1998-99. The present study has shown the increase of cropping intensity significantly, mainly due to increase in rice area. However, crop diversity has decreased mainly due to decline in the area under the minor crops like pearl millet, gram, rapeseed/ mustard. There is increase in area coverage of cotton-wheat and rice-wheat rotation, at the expense of the minor crops.     

Observations on temporal red shift of wheat from multi-date spaceborne MOS-B spectrometer data

High spectral resolution spectroscopy enables to have detailed information on chemical and morphological status of crop. An attempt of using space platform for detecting red edge shift during different growth stages of wheat crop is reported. Study was conducted during rabi 1996–97 season using Modular Opto-Electronic Scanner MOS-B Imaging data onboard IRS-P3 satellite. Inverted Gaussian model was fitted for satellite derived reflectances between 650 and 870 nm to derive inflection wavelength and its subsequent change with crop stages i.e. red shift. Red shift of 10 nm observed from crown root initiation stage (703.8 nm) to peak vegetative stage (714.2 nm). A comparative study on temporal behaviour of vegetative indices like NDVI and ARVI with Red edge showed that latter is more atmospherically stable parameter. It is concluded that red edge shift which hitherto has been observed from ground and airborne sensors, can also be detected from space.     

A Spatial Database of Cropping System and its Characteristics to Aid Climate Change Impact Assessment Studies

Cropping system study is not only useful to understand the overall sustainability of agricultural system, but also it helps in generating many important parameters which are useful in climate change impact assessment. Considering its importance, Space Applications Centre, took up a project for mapping and characterizing major cropping systems of Indo-Gangetic Plains of India. The study area included the five states of Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) of India, i.e. Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. There were two aspects of the study. The first aspect included state and district level cropping system mapping using multi-date remote sensing (IRS-AWiFS and Radarsat ScanSAR) data. The second part was to characterize the cropping system using moderate spatial resolution multi-date remote sensing data (SPOT VGT NDVI) and ground survey. The remote sensing data was used to compute three cropping system performance indices (Multiple Cropping Index, Area Diversity Index and Cultivated Land Utilization Index). Ground survey was conducted using questionnaires filled up by 1,000 farmers selected from 103 villages based on the cropping systems map. Apart from ground survey, soil and water sampling and quality analysis were carried out to understand the effect of different cropping systems and their management practices. The results showed that, rice-wheat was the major cropping system of the IGP, followed by Rice-Fallow-Fallow and Maize-Wheat. Other major cropping systems of IGP included Sugarcane based, Pearl millet-Wheat, Rice-Fallow-Rice, Cotton-Wheat. The ground survey could identify 77 cropping systems, out of which 38 are rice-based systems. Out of these 77 cropping systems, there were 5 single crop systems, occupying 6.5% coverage (of all cropping system area), 56 double crop systems with 72.7% coverage, and 16 triple crop systems with 20.8% coverage. The cropping system performance analysis showed that the crop diversity was found to be highest in Haryana, while the cropping intensity was highest in Punjab state.     

Multiple forecasts of kharif rice in orissa state-four year experience of fasal pilot study

Considering the requirement of multiple pre-harvest crop forecasts, the concept of Forecasting Agricultural output using Space, Agrometeorology and Land based observations (FASAL) has been formulated. Development of procedure and demonstration of this technique for four in-season forecasts for kharif rice has been carried out as a pilot study in Orissa State since 1998. As the availability of cloud-free optical remote sensing data during kharif season is very poor for Orissa state, multi-date RADARSAT SCANSAR data were used for acreage estimation of kharif rice. Meteorological models have been developed for early assessment of acreage and prediction of yield at mid and late crop growth season. Four in-season forecasts were made during four kharif seasons (1998-2001); the first forecast of zone level rice acreage at the beginning of kharif crop season using meteorological models, second forecast of district level acreage at mid growth season using two-date RADARSAT SCANSAR data and yield using meteorological models, third forecast at late growth season of district level acreage using three-date RADARSAT SCANSAR data and yield using meteorological models and revised forecast incorporating field observations at maturity. The results of multiple forecasts have shown rice acreage estimation and yield prediction with deviation up to 14 and 11 per cent respectively. This study has demonstrated the potential of FASAL concept to provide inseason multiple forecasts using data of remote sensing, meteorology and land based observations.     

Agricultural drought assessment at disaggregated level using AWiFS/WiFS data of Indian Remote Sensing satellites

Spatial differences in drought proneness and intensity of drought caused by differences in cropping patterns and crop growing environments within a district indicate the need for agricultural drought assessment at disaggregated level. The objective of this study is to use moderate resolution satellite images for detailed assessment of the agricultural drought situation at different administrative units (blocks) within a district. Monthly time composite NDVI images derived from moderate resolution AWiFS (60 m) and WiFS (180 m) images from Indian Remote Sensing satellites were analysed along with ground data on rainfall and crop sown areas for the kharif seasons (June – November) of 2002 (drought year), 2004 (early season drought) and 2005 (good monsoon year). The impact of the 2002 meteorological drought on crop area in different blocks of the district was assessed. The amplitude of crop condition variability in a severe drought year (2002) and a good year (2005) was used to map the degree of vulnerability of different blocks in the district to agricultural drought. The impact of early season deficit rainfall in 2004 on the agricultural situation and subsequent recovery of the agricultural situation was clearly shown. Agricultural drought assessment at disaggregated level using moderate resolution images is useful for prioritizing the problem areas within a district to undertake, in season drought management plans, such as alternate cropping strategies, as well as for end of the season drought relief management actions. The availability of ground data on rainfall, cropping pattern, crop calendar, irrigation, soil type etc., is very crucial in order to interpret the seasonal NDVI patterns at disaggregated level for drought assessment. The SWIR band of AWiFS sensor is a potential data source for assessing surface drought at the beginning of the season.     

Mapping Cropping Practices Using MODIS Time Series: Harnessing the Data Explosion

The MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) 250m EVI dataset provides a valuable ongoing means of characterising and monitoring changes in land use and resource condition. However the multiple factors that influence a time series of greenness data make the data difficult to analyse and interpret. Without prior knowledge, underlying models for time series in a given remote sensing image are often heterogeneous. So while conventional time series analysis methods such as wavelet transform and Fourier analysis may work well for part of the image, these models are either invalid or must be substantially re-parameterised for other parts of the image. To overcome these challenges we propose a new approach to distil information from earth observation time series data. The characteristics of a remote sensing time series are represented by a set of statistics (which we call coefficients) selected to correspond to the dynamics of a natural system. To ensure the coefficients are robust and generic, statistics are calculated independently by applying statistical models with less complexity on shorter segments within the time series. An International Standards Organization (ISO) Land Cover classification (Jansen 2000) was generated for cropping regions in the Gwydir and Namoi catchments, in Australia. Areas identified in the classification as irrigated and rain fed cropping were analysed using a tailored time series analysis tool. The crop analysis tool identifies time series features such as the number and duration of fallow periods, crop timing, presence/absence of a crop during a year for a specific growing season. This information is combined with paddock boundaries derived from Landsat imagery to provide detailed year-by-year insight into cropping practices in the Gwydir and Namoi catchments.     

Remote Sensing and Geographical Information System for canopy cover mapping

Availability of remote sensing data from earth observation satellites has made it convenient to map and monitor land use/land cover at regional to local scales. A land cover map is very critical for a various planning activities including watershed planning. The spectral and spatial resolutions are major constraints for mapping the crop resources at microlevel. The cropping pattern zones have been mapped using the false color composite, physiography, irrigation and toposheets. The IRS LISS-III data is classified into various categories depending on spectral reflectance from crop canopy and are overlaid on cropping zones map. The re-classified resultant map provides land use/land cover information including dominant cropping systems. The canopy cover is estimated monthly considering the crop calendar for the area.     

地理信息系统在种植业上的应用研究

地理信息系统在农业领域有着极为广泛的应用,在种植业方面应用前景广阔,通过地理信息系统可以直观地展示农作物分布、播种进度、出芽、长势、产量、收获进度等信息,并为各级领导决策提供帮助.本文将地理信息系统应用于种植业中小麦作物全生命周期的研究,将小麦的播种进度、出芽率、长势、墒情、病虫害、产量、收割进度、贸易情况等通过地理信息系统进行展示,通过制作统计专题图、单值专题图等,运用卷帘图、时间轴等方法,实现图上数据的比对,可在线分析研判,为领导辅助决策提供可视化、科学化的展示工具.     

Interpretation and analysis of multispectral data for aricultural crop cover types-role of crop spectral response and crop sectral signature

Airborne multispectral data obtained over mono and multiple cropping systems of small farming agriculture was studied for two cropping seasons for a possible development of crop spectral signatures and to utilize such signatures for interpretation of multispectral data and for assessing agricultural potentials of a region. In multiple cropping system, the unique crop spectral response exhibited by crop species at specific growth stages facilitated interpretation and analysis of multispectral data with the knowledge of crop phenology. For resolving spectral confusion between crop species due to growtn stages of different crop species, temporal data were observed to be useful. Development and use of crop spectral sigrature for interpretation and analysis multispectral data related to mono cropping system were found to be relatively less complex and offer great promise because of minimum spectral confusion.     

Use of spectral data in Markov chain model for crop yield forecasting

Crop yield is mainly dependent on weather, soil and technological inputs. Yield forecasting models have been developed mainly using multiple regression techniques based on biometrical characters of the plants and/or weather parameters. Matiset al. (1985) proposed another approach of crop yield modelling using Markov Chain theory based on biometrical characters. The integration of remote sensing with other technologies has provided an immense scope to improve upon the existing crop yield models. In the present study, multi date spectral data during crop growth period was used in Markov Chain Model to forecast wheat yield. The results indicate that the use of spectral data near the maximum vegetative growth of wheat crop improves the efficiency and reliability of yield forecast about a month before its actual harvest.     

District wise yield models of rice in Bihar based on water requirement and meteorological data

Pre-harvest crop production forecast has been successfully provided by remote sensing technique. However, the probability to get cloud-free optical remote sensing data during kharif season is poor. Microwave data having the capability to penetrate cloud is used in the absence of cloud free optical remote sensing data. Yield models in broad band frequency range are in development stage. Meteorological yield models are developed and predicted yield is combined with area estimated by remote sensing data to provide rice production forecast. This paper describes the methodology adopted for improving the predictability of rice yield before harvest of the crop in Bihar province by taking into consideration meteorological parameters during its growth cycle upto October. Models developed using fortnightly meteorological data have been found to give reasonably fair indications of expected yield of rice in advance of harvest. The yield predictions have been made based on meteorological data and effective rainfall based on water requirement calculations representing a group of districts under similar agro-climatic zones, which could be further improved by incorporating meteorological data of individual districts within each group.     

复种指数遥感监测方法

复种指数是反映水土光与自然资源利用程度的指标 ,其实质是沿时间序列 ,反映某一种植制度对耕地的利用程度。联系复种指数与时间序列NDVI曲线的纽带是农作物年内的循环规律。时间序列的NDVI值蕴涵着植被的生长和枯萎的年循环节律 ,经时间序列谐函数分析法 (HarmonicAnalysisofTimeSeries ,HANTS)重构的NDVI曲线 ,可以准确地反映农作物的出苗、拔节、抽穗、收获等物理过程。因此 ,根据时间序列的NDVI曲线的周期性 ,可以反向捕捉到耕地农作物动态的信息 ,进而得到耕地的复种指数。本文依据上述原理 ,提出复种指数遥感监测的方法 ,然后用 1999年至 2 0 0 2年 4年的VGT(SPOT4卫星vegetation数据 )旬合成NDVI时间序列数据集提取了复种指数 ,并利用地面样区观测结果和统计数据进行检验 ,取得很高的精度。     

基于NDVI时间序列数据的江西省水稻种植制度变化研究

利用Savitzky-Golay滤波对覆盖江西省范围的SPOT VGT NDVI时间序列数据进行平滑处理的基础上,结合坡度数据,通过非监督分类的方法提取了江西省2000、2005和2010年水稻种植范围,并根据NDVI的年内动态变化,从水稻种植范围、水稻生长季起始时间、水稻复种指数和NDVI最大振幅等分析了江西省水稻种植和生长情况,探讨2000~2010年江西省水稻生产的变化。     

Earth observations during space shuttle flight STS‐41: Discovery's mission to planet earth

Abstract

Multi‐temporal ERS‐1 SAR data acquired over a large agricultural region in West Bengal was used to classify kharif crops like rice, jute and sugarcane. Rice crop grown under lowland management practice showed a temporal characteristic. The dynamic range of backscatter was highest for this crop in temporal SAR data. This was used to classify rice using temporal SAR data. Such temporal character was not observed for the other study crops, which may be due to the difference in cultivation practice and crop calendar. Significant increase in backscatter from the ploughed fields was used to derive information on onset and duration of land preparations. Synergistic use of optical remote sensing data and SAR data increased the separability of rice crop from homesteads and permanent vegetation classes.     

Derivation of crop phenological parameters using multi-date SPOT-VGT-NDVI data: A case study for Punjab

Crop phenological parameters, such as the start and end time of the crop growth, the total length of the growing season, time of peak vegetation and rate of greening and senescence are important for planning crop management and crop diversification/intensification. Multi-temporal remote sensing data provides opportunity to characterize the crop phenology at regional level. This study was conducted during the kharif season of the year 2001–02 for Punjab. The ten-day Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) composite products, with 1 km spatial resolution, available from the Vegetation sensor onboard SPOT4 were used for the study. Twenty-one temporal datasets from May 1, 2001 to November 21, 2001 were used. Logical modelling approach was followed to compute the minimum and maximum NDVI, the amplitude of NDVI, the threshold NDVI during sowing and harvest, the crop duration, integrated NDVI and skewness of profile. The analysis showed that before July beginning, in the whole of Punjab, sowing/planting was over. It was found that the crop emergence in the eastern part of the state started earlier than the western region. The maximum NDVI, which represented peak vegetative stage, was above 0.7 and occurred mostly during August. The duration of crops ranged between 90–140 days, with majority between 110–120 days. Total integrated NDVI in Punjab was generally above 60. Using principal component analysis and divergence analysis seven best metrics were selected for crop discrimination.     

农作物长势综合遥感监测方法

作物收获之前进行大范围作物生长状况评价 ,可以尽早的获得有关作物产量信息。介绍了中国农情遥感监测系统的综合作物长势监测方法。以遥感数据标准化处理、云标识、云污染去除和非耕地去除为基础 ,生成质量一致的遥感数据产品集 ,提取区域作物生长过程。作物长势监测分为实时作物长势监测和作物生长趋势分析。实时的作物长势监测可以定性和定量地在空间上分析作物生长状况 ,分级显示作物生长状况 ,分区域统计水田和旱地中不同长势占的比重。作物生长趋势分析可以进行年际间的生长过程对比 ,从时间轴上反映作物持续生长的差异性 ,统计全国、主产区、省和区划单元 4个尺度的耕地、水田、旱地作物生长过程曲线年际间差异 ,从而为早期的产量预测提供信息。通过处理流程的系统化 ,建设了运行化的作物长势遥感监测分析系统 ,为用户构建了综合的作物实时生长状况 ,苗情的生长趋势分析环境。同时可以依据野外地面实测信息对遥感监测结果进行标定和检验。 1998年以来 ,系统在满足日常运行的前提下 ,技术方法逐渐改进和完善 ,监测结果的精度和可靠性不断得到提高。     

Crop cover and crop phenological information from red and infrared spectral responses

Possibility of utilizing the red and infrared spectral information for assessing status of vegetation cover and consequential crop phenological information are discussed. The experiment was conducted in a potential agricultural area around Mandya town of Karnataka State and airborne spectral information was obtained through modular multispectral scanner from a height of 1000 meters above the ground level. The spectral information of red (0.66–0.70 urn) and infrared (0.77–0.86 urn) bands was extracted with the aid of an interactive computer system : the multispectral data analysis system. Based on the spectral information, the data was analysed and interpreted with the support of ground information. Crop fields without vegetation were observed to have infrared/red ratio in the range of 0.70 to 0.97 and also it was possible to distinguish wet and dry paddy field. Crop fields covered with vegetation exhibited higher infrared/red ratio depending on the nature of crop growth. For instance, rice crop exhibited spectral ratio of 0.78 at the time of planting, 3.52 at the time of maximum vegetation growth and 2.04 during the maturation phase. In case of sugarcane crop, the increase and decrease in spectral ratio were gradual because of its longer duration. From infrared and red band information it was possible to distinguish crop species based on rate of change of vegetation cover which corresponded with the change in spectral ratios. The temporal information expressed in two dimensional space for red and infrared band also enabled clearly to distinguish between rice and sugarcane.     

A support vector machine to identify irrigated crop types using time-series Landsat NDVI data

Site-specific information of crop types is required for many agro-environmental assessments. The study investigated the potential of support vector machines (SVMs) in discriminating various crop types in a complex cropping system in the Phoenix Active Management Area. We applied SVMs to Landsat time-series Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data using training datasets selected by two different approaches: stratified random approach and intelligent selection approach using local knowledge. The SVM models effectively classified nine major crop types with overall accuracies of >86% for both training datasets. Our results showed that the intelligent selection approach was able to reduce the training set size and achieved higher overall classification accuracy than the stratified random approach. The intelligent selection approach is particularly useful when the availability of reference data is limited and unbalanced among different classes. The study demonstrated the potential of utilizing multi-temporal Landsat imagery to systematically monitor crop types and cropping patterns over time in arid and semi-arid regions.     

Development and validation of spectrometeorological yield models of mustard oil seed crop in Rajasthan state

Attempt has been made to develop spectro meteorological yield models using normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) derived from NOAA AVHRR data over the crop growth period and monthly rainfall data for predicting yield of mustard crop. The AVHRR data spanning seven crop growing seasons, the rain gauze station-level rainfall data and crop yield data determined from crop cutting experiments (CCE) conducted by state Directorate of Economics and Statistics (DES) are the basic input data. A methodology has been developed to normalize the multi-temporal NDVIs for the minimisation of atmospheric effects, which is found to reduce the noise in NDVI due to varying atmospheric conditions from season to season and improve the predictability of statistical multiple linear regression yield models developed for nine geographically large districts of Rajasthan state. The spectro meteorological yield models had been validated by comparing the predicted district level yields with those estimated from the crop cutting experiments.