Detection of the urban heat island in Beijing using HJ-1B satellite imagery

Satellite images are used extensively in studying the urban heat island (UHI) phenomenon. We evaluated the suitability of thermal infrared (TIR) data from the HJ-1B satellite for detecting UHI using a case study in Beijing. Two modified algorithms for retrieving the land surface temperature (LST) from HJ-1B data were tested. The results were compared with LST images derived from a Landsat TM thermal band and the MODIS LST output. The spatial pattern of UHI generated using HJ-1B data matched well with that produced using TM and MODIS data. Of the two algorithms, the mono-window algorithm performed better but further tests are necessary. With more frequent coverage than TM and higher spatial resolution than MODIS, the HJ-1B TIR data present a unique opportunity to study thermal environments in cities in China and neighboring countries.     

北京城市化进程对城市热岛的影响研究

利用1971～2000年北京20个气象观测站逐日４个时次（02:00、08:00、14:00、20:00）的温度资料,选取具有代表性的城区和郊区多个站点的平均值对北京城市化进程对城市热岛效应的影响、城市热岛强度的日变化和长期变化进行了研究.分析结果指出：（1）北京城市热岛强度和总人口对数呈线性相关关系,其长期变化相关系数为0.76;（2）北京城市建成区的范围与城市热岛影响范围呈同步变化趋势;(3)不同时次城市热岛强度的长期变化指出,北京城市热岛强度以平均每10年0.22℃的速率加剧,其中1999年北京热岛强度达1.13℃（夜间,02:00）;(4)夜间热岛强度明显大于日间.就10年平均而言, 20世纪80年代和90年代夜戒热岛强度均超过0.5℃;(5)一天4个时次热岛强度的季节变化趋势基本一致,均表现为冬季强、夏季弱.并且,夜间02:00时热岛最强,中午14:00时热岛最弱.     

Object-oriented land cover classification using HJ-1 remote sensing imagery

The object-oriented information extraction technique was used to improve classification accuracy, and addressed the problem that HJ-1 CCD remote sensing images have only four spectral bands with moderate spatial resolution. We used two key techniques: the selection of optimum image segmentation scale and the development of an appropriate object-oriented information extraction strategy. With the principle of minimizing merge cost of merging neighboring pixels/objects, we used spatial autocorrelation index Moran’s I and the variance index to select the optimum segmentation scale. The Nearest Neighborhood (NN) classifier based on sampling and a knowledge-based fuzzy classifier were used in the object-oriented information extraction strategy. In this classification step, feature optimization was used to improve information extraction accuracy using reduced data dimension. These two techniques were applied to land cover information extraction for Shanghai city using a HJ-1 CCD image. Results indicate that the information extraction accuracy of the object-oriented method was much higher than that of the pixel-based method.     

北京城市热岛的时空变化分析

利用1987、1999、2000、2001、2002和2005年六幅陆地卫星影像研究北京市规划区地表城市热岛（SUHI）．首先用决策树分类法进行分类,得到六幅不同时相的土地利用／覆盖分类图像．根据Artis＆Carnahan算法利用热红外通道的灰度值计算地表辐射亮温,基于分类结果进行比辐射率纠正,计算地表温度．通过分析北京市规划区1987～2005年间地表城市热岛的特征,发现不同土地利用／土地覆盖类型与地表城市热岛有密切关系;2001年、2002年和2005年影像中市区的热岛分布的破碎度增加,由原来的集中分布慢慢向周围扩散,并在市区中心植被覆盖高的区域出现蓝色“凉爽”区;地表城市热岛增加的区域与城市扩展区域一致,城市化过程是城市热岛面积不断增加的主要的原因．     

Photosynthetically active radiation retrieval based on HJ-1A/B satellite data

Photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) is essential for plant photosynthesis and carbon cycle, and is also important for meteorological and environmental monitoring. To advance China’s disaster and environmental monitoring capabilities, the HJ-1A/B satellites have been placed in Earth orbit. One of their environmental monitoring objectives is the study of PAR. We simulated direct solar, scattered and environment radiation between 400 and 700 nm under different atmospheric parameters (solar zenith angle, atmospheric water vapor, atmospheric ozone, aerosol optical thickness, surface elevation and surface albedo), and then established a look-up table between these input parameters and PAR. Based on the look-up table, we used HJ-1A/B aerosol and surface albedo outputs to derive the corresponding PAR. Validation of inversed instantaneous and observed PAR values using HJ-1 Heihe experimental data had a root mean square error of 25.2 W m^?2, with a relative error of 5.9%. The root mean square error for accumulated daily PAR and observed values was 0.49 MJ m^?2, with a relative error of 3.5%. Our approach improved significantly the computational efficiency, compared with using directly radiation transfer equations. We also studied the sensitivity of various input parameters to photosynthetically active radiation, and found that solar zenith angle and atmospheric aerosols were sensitive PAR parameters. Surface albedo had some effect on PAR, but water vapor and ozone had minimal impact on PAR.     

Photosynthetically active radiation retrieval based on HJ-1A/B satellite data

Photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) is essential for plant photosynthesis and carbon cycle, and is also important for meteorological and environmental monitoring. To advance China’s disaster and environmental monitoring capabilities, the HJ-1A/B satellites have been placed in Earth orbit. One of their environmental monitoring objectives is the study of PAR. We simulated direct solar, scattered and environment radiation between 400 and 700 nm under different atmospheric parameters (solar zenith angle, atmospheric water vapor, atmospheric ozone, aerosol optical thickness, surface elevation and surface albedo), and then established a look-up table between these input parameters and PAR. Based on the look-up table, we used HJ-1A/B aerosol and surface albedo outputs to derive the corresponding PAR. Validation of inversed instantaneous and observed PAR values using HJ-1 Heihe experimental data had a root mean square error of 25.2 W m⁻², with a relative error of 5.9%. The root mean square error for accumulated daily PAR and observed values was 0.49 MJ m⁻², with a relative error of 3.5%. Our approach improved significantly the computational efficiency, compared with using directly radiation transfer equations. We also studied the sensitivity of various input parameters to photosynthetically active radiation, and found that solar zenith angle and atmospheric aerosols were sensitive PAR parameters. Surface albedo had some effect on PAR, but water vapor and ozone had minimal impact on PAR.

     

Detection of terracettes in semi-arid rangelands using Fourier-based image analysis of very-high-resolution satellite imagery

Terracettes are repeating step-like microtopographic features roughly following the contours of hillslopes that are often associated with livestock tracks. These common features in many semi-arid rangelands have been shown to alter soil moisture, slope stability, sediment transport, infiltration rates and coincident vegetation patterns. The spatial extent and distribution of terracettes is currently unknown and therefore their landscape-scale hydrological influence is absent in modelling and land management decision making. When viewed in uncalibrated very-high-resolution satellite imagery, terracettes appear as repetitious parallel lines within a specific frequency range. Here we used the two-dimensional discrete Fourier transform to identify terracettes at three test sites in the Inland Pacific Northwest, USA. We created an automated rule-based classification of terracetted sites based on spatial frequency, orientation, slope angle and land-use class. Results show a detection accuracy of 77% based on an optimized spatial frequencies search window between 0.3 and 0.7 m⁻¹. Terracette orientation did not contribute significantly to detection accuracy because orientations varied ±50° from digital elevation model-derived aspects. We found terracettes occurred predominantly on north-facing slopes at our test sites, although this estimate may be exaggerated by the timing of image capture. We feel that the method developed in this paper provides a way forward to map terracettes at large scales and enable new insights into the functions of terracettes in the landscape. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The diurnal and seasonal characteristics of urban heat island variation in Beijing city and surrounding areas and impact factors based on remote sensing satellite data

Based on the land surface temperature (LST), the land cover classification map,vegetation coverage, and surface evapotranspiration derived from EOS-MODIS satellite data, and by the use of GIS spatial analytic technique and multivariate statistical analysis method, the urban heat island (UHI) spatial distribution of the diurnal and seasonal variabilities and its driving forces are studied in Beijing city and surrounding areas in 2001. The relationships among UHI distribution and landcover categories, topographic factor, vegetation greenness, and surface evapotranspiration are analyzed. The results indicate that: (i) The significant UHI occur in Beijing city areas in the four seasons due to high heat capacity and multi-reflection of compression building, as well as with special topographic features of its three sides surrounded by mountains,especially in the summer. The UHI spatial distribution is corresponding with the urban geometry structure profile. The LST difference is approximately 4-6℃ between Beijing city and suburb areas, comparatively is 8- 10℃ between Beijing city area and outer suburb area in northwestern regions. (ii) The UHI distribution and intensity in daytime are different from nighttime in Beijing city area, the nighttime UHI is obvious. However, in the daytime, the significant UHI mainly appears in the summer, the autumn takes second place, and the UHI in the winter and the spring seem not obvious. The surface evapotranspiration in suburb areas is larger than that in urban areas in the summer, and high latent heat exchange is evident, which leads to LST difference between city area and suburb area. (iii) The reflection of surface landcover categories is sensitive to the UHI, the correlation between vegetation greenness and UHI shows obviously negative.The scatterplot shows that there is the negative correlation between NDVI and LST (R2 = 0.6481).The results demonstrate that the vegetation greenness is an important factor for reducing the UHI,and large-scale construction of greenbelts can considerably reduce the UHI effect.     

近10年来北京夏季城市热岛的变化及环境效应的分析研究

根据1993～2003年北京地区气象台站7、8月的温度资料,分析研究了近10年来北京夏季城市热岛的变化及其环境效应.结果表明：北京夏季城市热岛的水平范围扩大到近郊区和远郊区的通州,分布特征也由“单中心”转变为“多中心”;平均热岛强度呈逐渐增强趋势,在夏季出现了强热岛;北京夏季出现热岛和强热岛的天数激增,7月最大热岛强度也呈逐年上升趋势;热岛的强度和水平分布都有明显的日变化;由于热岛效应使城区增温显著,北京夏季的高温日（Tmax≥35℃）也逐年增多. 本文还指出朝阳区气象观测站由于周围高大植被的影响,观测资料已不具备城区代表性.同时也证明绿化对降低城市热岛效应是极为有效的.本文的研究成果对北京城市发展和规划有一定的科学参考价值.     

Detection of slow-moving landslides through automated monitoring of surface deformation using Sentinel-2 satellite imagery

Landslides are one of the most damaging natural hazards and have killed tens of thousands of people around the world over the past decade. Slow-moving landslides, with surface velocities on the order of 10⁻²–10² m a⁻¹, can damage buildings and infrastructure and be precursors to catastrophic collapses. However, due to their slow rates of deformation and at times subtle geomorphic signatures, they are often overlooked in local and large-scale hazard inventories. Here, we present a remote-sensing workflow to automatically map slow-moving landslides using feature tracking of freely and globally available optical satellite imagery. We evaluate this proof-of-concept workflow through three case studies from different environments: the extensively instrumented Slumgullion landslide in the United States, an unstable lateral moraine in Chilean Patagonia and a high-relief landscape in central Nepal. This workflow is able to delineate known landslides and identify previously unknown areas of hillslope deformation, which we consider as candidate slow-moving landslides. Improved mapping of the spatial distribution, character and surface displacement rates of slow-moving landslides will improve our understanding of their role in the multi-hazard chain and their sensitivity to climatic changes and can direct future detailed localised investigations into their dynamics.     

Selecting the appropriate hydraulic model structure using low-resolution satellite imagery

This study aims at investigating the value added by an explicit representation of floodplain processes in hydraulic models, by comparing the results of a pure 1D model to the ones of an integrated 1D-2D model. The analysis is performed on a 96 km reach of the River Po (Italy). For this test site, two different model structures (1D and 1D-2D) are implemented and compared. The models are first calibrated using high water marks of a high magnitude event and then validated by means of a coarse resolution space-borne flood extent map of a low-magnitude event. The explicit inclusion of 2D features strongly improves the performance of the model, both in terms of accuracy and robustness. The possible causes of this behaviour are investigated and some statements are drawn based on the analysis of the features of the two flood events. Some general conclusions on the effect of the choice between 1D and 2D models arise from the analysis of the calibration-validation procedure. In this context a new measure of fit is proposed, to be used if binary (wet/dry) observations are available and is proven to be able to better distinguish among different sets of model parameters. Lastly, the study also shows the ability of timely low resolution satellite imagery to assist the selection of the most appropriate hydraulic model structure.     

Groundwater temperature evolution in the subsurface urban heat island of Cologne,Germany

Long‐term heating of shallow urban aquifers is observed worldwide. Our measurements in the city of Cologne, Germany revealed that the groundwater temperatures found in the city centre are more than 5 K higher than the undisturbed background. To explore the role of groundwater flow for the development of subsurface urban heat islands, a numerical flow and heat transport model is set up, which describes the hydraulic conditions of Cologne and simulates the transient evolution of thermal anomalies in the urban ground. A main focus is on the influence of horizontal groundwater flow, groundwater recharge and trends in local ground warming. To examine heat transport in groundwater, a scenario consisting of a local hot spot with a length of 1 km of long‐term ground heating was set up in the centre of the city. Groundwater temperature‐depth profiles at upstream, central and downstream locations of this hot spot are inspected. The simulation results indicate that the main thermal transport mechanisms are long‐term vertical conductive heat input, horizontal advection and transverse dispersion. Groundwater recharge rates in the city are low (<100 mm a^?1) and thus do not significantly contribute to heat transport into the urban aquifer. With groundwater flow, local vertical temperature profiles become very complex and are hard to interpret, if local flow conditions and heat sources are not thoroughly known. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

城市热岛效应和气溶胶浓度的动力、热力学分析

在能量平衡方程中引入气溶胶的吸收和散射作用,并与三维行星边界层运动方程组相耦合,根据温度分布显式求解运动场,探讨三维行星边界层内温度、运动、气溶胶浓度分布特征.结果表明,城市人为热释放直接决定了城市热岛效应的强度,城市面积越大,城市热岛效应的强度也越强,城市面积固定时,城市越分散,城市热岛效应的强度越弱,这为城市建设多采取卫星城的方式提供了一定的理论支撑.气溶胶的散射作用要大于吸收作用,其对城市热岛效应的强度主要起削弱作用,当气溶胶浓度较大时,吸收作用更显著一些,此时城市热岛效应的强度会有一定的增强,但是幅度不大.当城市热岛效应的强度增强时,其所驱动的环流也会增强,造成城区中心气溶胶浓度略有下降.     

Application of satellite imagery in tectonic interpretation

The advabtages of remote sensing are widely used in geologic research. In Hungary, however, in the deep sedimentary basin and densely covered mountain areas, the methods which have been developed and which have led to significant result in arid and semiarid regions cannot be used effectively.In this case, our interest should be focused on detecting structural features instead of on lithologic discrimination. Consequently, this approach can be applied for only morphologically performed areas. A better understanding of the tectonics can be achieved by the evaluation of its morphological expressions.A block-shift method is described for the structural evaluation of linear features, and it is applied for one of the most controversial and least known tectonic units: the Mecsek Mts. (S-Hungary). This method is based on the calculation of several conditional frequencies of length, azimuth and shape for overlapping blocks.Our experience leads to the conclusion that the widely accepted East-West segmentation of the Mecsek Mts. should be changed. We have found an Eastern-Central-Western Mecsek structure which correlates well with some up-to-date geologic mapping results. The lithologic differences are enhanced by morphological and structural features.Besides its scientific achievements, the economic importance of this research is supported by the perspective of the utilization of non-renewable natural resources in the Mecsek Mts.     

Regional‐scale mapping of groundwater discharge zones using thermal satellite imagery

Mapping groundwater discharge zones at broad spatial scales remains a challenge, particularly in data sparse regions. We applied a regional scale mapping approach based on thermal remote sensing to map discharge zones in a complex watershed with a broad diversity of geological materials, land cover and topographic variation situated within the Prairie Parkland of northern Alberta, Canada. We acquired winter thermal imagery from the USGS Landsat archive to demonstrate the utility of this data source for applications that can complement both scientific and management programs. We showed that the thermally determined potential discharge areas were corroborated with hydrological (spring locations) and chemical (conservative tracers of groundwater) data. This study demonstrates how thermal remote sensing can form part of a comprehensive mapping framework to investigate groundwater resources over broad spatial scales. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Estimation of clear-sky longwave downward radiation from HJ-1B thermal data

To satisfy the requirement of surface energy budget research on the meso-and micro-scale,a parameterization is developed to calculate high spatial resolution,clear-sky downward longwave radiation(DLR)from HJ-1B thermal data.The DLR algorithm is established based on extensive radiative transfer simulation and statistical analysis.To address the problem that HJ-1B has a single thermal channel and lacks atmospheric information,the brightness temperature of HJ-1B and water vapor content are used in the algorithm.An accuracy evaluation and error analysis for the algorithm is conducted using a simulated radiation dataset.The result shows that the algorithm performs well in most circumstances,but there is obvious underestimation when water vapor content is greater than 4g/cm2 .Error analysis indicates the accuracy of estimated DLRs is affected by uncertainties in input parameters,including water vapor content and top-of-atmosphere radiance.It is also affected by the difference between ground and near-surface air temperature.The algorithm is applied to actual HJ-1B data,and validated by ground data from six stations in the Heihe River and Haihe River basins.The estimated DLRs have good consistency with measured data except at Huazhaizi,and root mean square errors at most sites are around 20W/m2 ,which is slightly better than the result of MODIS. There is significant overestimation of DLR at Huazhaizi during summer,which is mainly produced by the large ground-air temperature difference.A correction process based on temperature difference is proposed and applied at Huazhaizi.The result shows that the positive bias is largely diminished after correction.     

Neotectonic interpretation of Hungarian lineaments in the light of satellite imagery

On the basis of a lineament system inferred from satellite imagery, a number of quite distinct neotectonic units making up the central part of the Carpathian Basin can be singled out. Together with examination of the orientation and frequency distribution per sub-area of the lineaments, the authors have also analyzed the geological characteristics of the units involved. These studies have enabled them to identify an older, pre-Tertiary and a younger neotectonic system of elements. These two generations of lineaments show rather little identity with each other.The major lineaments separate relatively independent, homogeneous neotectonic units (segments) that are basically different from one another and are the results of particular geological processes, as reflected by the present-day geomorphological and Quaternary sedimentatin processes.As well as enabling a better understanding of the Tertiary and mainly the Quaternary geological processes, the determination of the lineament systems and neotectonic units, based on satellite imagery, can enhance efforts aimed at assessing their interconnections with both eartquakes and the geodesic anomalies, as well as with the occurrences of some mineral deposits.     

城市冠层结构热力效应对城市热岛形成及强度影响的模拟研究

本文在城市边界层预报模式中耦合了一个单层冠层模式,此模式能够体现城市冠层结构和人为热源对城市热岛的共同作用.通过传统平板模式和城市冠层模式的模拟结果与自动气象站观测资料对比发现,耦合了城市冠层模式的模拟结果与观测资料更为吻合,尤其能够较好地模拟出城市地区夜间地面的气温变化情况.对北京城市区域的模拟结果进行分析,白家庄地区冠层建筑物使得城市地区气温白天下降,夜晚上升,不考虑人为热源作用时,城市冠层使得白家庄站地面气温白天最低下降2.5℃,夜间气温最大升高为4.7℃.针对模拟区域较小的理想算例模拟结果分析表明,城市冠层模式能够很好地模拟城市地区地表能量平衡关系,体现城市冠层对长短波辐射的封截以及热量存储能力,全天平均净辐射通量由传统模式的43.38 W/m2变为84.19 W/m2,热存储通量白天最大值为278.04 W/m2,夜晚最大释放热存储通量为160.35 W/m2.冠层建筑物和人为热源对夜间城市热岛强度的贡献分别为70.65％和29.35％.城市冠层建筑物对夜间城市热岛的形成起决定性作用.     

超大城市热岛效应的季节变化特征及其年际差异

本文以超大城市上海为例,分析了近50年四季城郊温差的总体变化趋势,同时利用城市化进程中4个年份(1987、1990、1997和2004年)9个气象站的气温数据,重点研究了上海地区热岛效应的季节变化特征及年际差异.结果表明,近50年来上海城郊温差逐年显著增长,年平均热岛天数频率为86.0%,年平均热岛强度为1.17 ℃,秋季热岛频率和强度高于其他季节,累积热岛强度也最大.不同时刻热岛的特征表明,夜间热岛(2∶00,20∶00时刻)累积强度在四季都较大,在春、夏季14∶00时刻热岛累积强度较大,而在秋、冬季8∶00时刻热岛累积强度较大.进一步分析表明,热岛效应的四季差异主要在于较强热岛和强热岛出现频率的差异;秋季大气最稳定的F类型比例较高可能是热岛效应更加显著的原因之一.四个年份对比分析表明,1997年之前的三个年份,热岛效应的四季差异比较显著.之后,随着年代的推移,四季累积热岛强度逐渐趋于均化,并且夏季低强度热岛有向中强热岛和强热岛转化的趋势,一定程度上反映了夏季人为热的贡献.     

Spatial prediction and analysis of Himalayan marmot plague natural epidemic foci in China based on HJ-1 satellite data

Plague, caused by the gram-negative bacterium Yersinia pestis, is a serious and rapidly progressing illness in humans that can be fatal if not treated effectively. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is the largest area of natural Himalayan marmot (Marmota himalayana) plague foci in China and covers more than 630000 km². Akesai County in Gansu Province is a part of this natural focus of plague and was chosen as a study area. Our study used an ecological niche modeling (ENM) approach to predict the potential distribution of the Himalayan marmot. Environment and Disaster Monitor Satellite (HJ-1) data was used to investigate environment factors that affect plague host animal activity. Host animal point data from active surveillance was combined with environmental variables from the HJ-1 satellite and other databases, and the models of the potential distribution of Himalayan marmot were produced with the Genetic Algorithm for Rule-Set Production (GARP). The probability of marmot presence was divided into 0–5%, 5%–20%, 20%–40%, 40%–80%, and 80%–100% subgroups. Areas with 80%-100% probability exhibited the greatest potential for the presence of Himalayan marmot. According to the predicted potential distribution of Himalayan marmot in the study area, active surveillance of plague hosts and plague control and prevention could be more efficient.