Remote Sensing
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Understanding the hydrologic patterns in vast wetland ecosystems has proven to be a difficult task. Most of the world’s wetland ecosystems are not adequately monitored for water level, flow, or discharge, and where these are monitored,... more
Understanding the hydrologic patterns in vast wetland ecosystems has proven to be a difficult
task. Most of the world’s wetland ecosystems are not adequately monitored for water level, flow, or discharge,
and where these are monitored, gauges are usually located on the largest rivers or lakes and canals
rather than in the seasonally flooded areas. Even those wetlands that have the most extensive networks of
gauges are not sufficiently covered to understand the finer-scale spatial dynamics of hydrologic condition.
However, high-density in situ monitoring of stage, flow, and discharge of vast wetland complexes would be
prohibitively expensive, even in a region such as south Florida, USA where considerable resources are
devoted to water management. Several techniques are presented that were developed to use Synthetic Aperture
Radar (SAR) satellite imagery to remotely detect, monitor, and map regional scale spatial and temporal Understanding the hydrologic patterns in vast wetland ecosystems has proven to be a difficult
task. Most of the world’s wetland ecosystems are not adequately monitored for water level, flow, or discharge,
and where these are monitored, gauges are usually located on the largest rivers or lakes and canals
rather than in the seasonally flooded areas. Even those wetlands that have the most extensive networks of
gauges are not sufficiently covered to understand the finer-scale spatial dynamics of hydrologic condition.
However, high-density in situ monitoring of stage, flow, and discharge of vast wetland complexes would be
prohibitively expensive, even in a region such as south Florida, USA where considerable resources are
devoted to water management. Several techniques are presented that were developed to use Synthetic Aperture
Radar (SAR) satellite imagery to remotely detect, monitor, and map regional scale spatial and temporal Understanding the hydrologic patterns in vast wetland ecosystems has proven to be a difficult
task. Most of the world’s wetland ecosystems are not adequately monitored for water level, flow, or discharge,
and where these are monitored, gauges are usually located on the largest rivers or lakes and canals
rather than in the seasonally flooded areas. Even those wetlands that have the most extensive networks of
gauges are not sufficiently covered to understand the finer-scale spatial dynamics of hydrologic condition.
However, high-density in situ monitoring of stage, flow, and discharge of vast wetland complexes would be
prohibitively expensive, even in a region such as south Florida, USA where considerable resources are
devoted to water management. Several techniques are presented that were developed to use Synthetic Aperture
Radar (SAR) satellite imagery to remotely detect, monitor, and map regional scale spatial and temporal changes in wetland hydrology. This study shows that SAR imagery can be used to create inundation maps
of relative soil moisture and flooding in non-woody wetlands. A comparison of in situ water-level data
collected from 1997 to 1999 at 12 test sites to SAR imagery revealed that relative backscatter within a site
does vary in a linear fashion with changes in water levels. Using SAR imagery collected between 1997 and
1999, inundation maps were created at approximately bi-monthly periods for the south Florida region. This
time series of inundation/soil moisture maps (1997–1999) reveals the spatial and temporal variation in degree
of flooding in the Greater Everglades, which is information previously unavailable from ground-based observations
alone. In addition, hydroperiod maps were created based on a temporal series of 14 months of SAR imagery.
task. Most of the world’s wetland ecosystems are not adequately monitored for water level, flow, or discharge,
and where these are monitored, gauges are usually located on the largest rivers or lakes and canals
rather than in the seasonally flooded areas. Even those wetlands that have the most extensive networks of
gauges are not sufficiently covered to understand the finer-scale spatial dynamics of hydrologic condition.
However, high-density in situ monitoring of stage, flow, and discharge of vast wetland complexes would be
prohibitively expensive, even in a region such as south Florida, USA where considerable resources are
devoted to water management. Several techniques are presented that were developed to use Synthetic Aperture
Radar (SAR) satellite imagery to remotely detect, monitor, and map regional scale spatial and temporal Understanding the hydrologic patterns in vast wetland ecosystems has proven to be a difficult
task. Most of the world’s wetland ecosystems are not adequately monitored for water level, flow, or discharge,
and where these are monitored, gauges are usually located on the largest rivers or lakes and canals
rather than in the seasonally flooded areas. Even those wetlands that have the most extensive networks of
gauges are not sufficiently covered to understand the finer-scale spatial dynamics of hydrologic condition.
However, high-density in situ monitoring of stage, flow, and discharge of vast wetland complexes would be
prohibitively expensive, even in a region such as south Florida, USA where considerable resources are
devoted to water management. Several techniques are presented that were developed to use Synthetic Aperture
Radar (SAR) satellite imagery to remotely detect, monitor, and map regional scale spatial and temporal Understanding the hydrologic patterns in vast wetland ecosystems has proven to be a difficult
task. Most of the world’s wetland ecosystems are not adequately monitored for water level, flow, or discharge,
and where these are monitored, gauges are usually located on the largest rivers or lakes and canals
rather than in the seasonally flooded areas. Even those wetlands that have the most extensive networks of
gauges are not sufficiently covered to understand the finer-scale spatial dynamics of hydrologic condition.
However, high-density in situ monitoring of stage, flow, and discharge of vast wetland complexes would be
prohibitively expensive, even in a region such as south Florida, USA where considerable resources are
devoted to water management. Several techniques are presented that were developed to use Synthetic Aperture
Radar (SAR) satellite imagery to remotely detect, monitor, and map regional scale spatial and temporal changes in wetland hydrology. This study shows that SAR imagery can be used to create inundation maps
of relative soil moisture and flooding in non-woody wetlands. A comparison of in situ water-level data
collected from 1997 to 1999 at 12 test sites to SAR imagery revealed that relative backscatter within a site
does vary in a linear fashion with changes in water levels. Using SAR imagery collected between 1997 and
1999, inundation maps were created at approximately bi-monthly periods for the south Florida region. This
time series of inundation/soil moisture maps (1997–1999) reveals the spatial and temporal variation in degree
of flooding in the Greater Everglades, which is information previously unavailable from ground-based observations
alone. In addition, hydroperiod maps were created based on a temporal series of 14 months of SAR imagery.
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Spacecraft orbit estimation based on optical observations captured by a commercial camera is considered to be a challenge. Camera focal length turned out to be a parameter of utmost importance. The main goal of this work is to develop... more
Spacecraft orbit estimation based on optical observations captured by a commercial camera is considered to be a challenge. Camera focal length turned out to be a parameter of utmost importance. The main goal of this work is to develop different algorithms able to estimate the focal length of a commercial camera based on actual measurements (observations).
Thirteen different algorithms, including different Kalman Filters, Genetic Algorithms, and Simulated Annealing, and three different cameras are used in this study. The results of these algorithms are compared in order to measure their efficiency and determine the best way to compute the focal length. It is found that the best performance (in terms of the selected cost function) is achieved by genetic algorithms. Estimation algorithms such as Kalman filters are useful when there is a large ambiguity associated with the value of camera focal length. The graphical solution is characterized by simplicity and relatively good performance.
Keywords: Commercial Camera; Optical Observation; Estimation Algorithms; Genetic Algorithms; Simulated Annealing.
Thirteen different algorithms, including different Kalman Filters, Genetic Algorithms, and Simulated Annealing, and three different cameras are used in this study. The results of these algorithms are compared in order to measure their efficiency and determine the best way to compute the focal length. It is found that the best performance (in terms of the selected cost function) is achieved by genetic algorithms. Estimation algorithms such as Kalman filters are useful when there is a large ambiguity associated with the value of camera focal length. The graphical solution is characterized by simplicity and relatively good performance.
Keywords: Commercial Camera; Optical Observation; Estimation Algorithms; Genetic Algorithms; Simulated Annealing.
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Discriminating different vegetation types is essential in monitoring land use and cover from satellite images. Many times the existence of plants with similar spectral behavior hinders the correct identification through the digital... more
Discriminating different vegetation types is essential in monitoring land use and cover from satellite images. Many times the existence of plants with similar spectral behavior hinders the correct identification through the digital classification procedure. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze the use of the Red Edge band from an RapidEye satellite image, in order to perform the discrimination of different vegetation cover. From the development of vegetation indices, was examined the spectral behavior of different types of vegetation present in the scene, the classes of interest were subdivided into: Pasture, Sugarcane and Native forest. The Red Edge band was more sensitive to different plant species than the NIR band. And the different combinations bands through the vegetation indices helped to distinguish and map specific vegetation types.
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In 2014, the Inaccessible and Remote Archaeological Landscapes (INARLAND) project began to explore new directions in Saharan archaeology, emphasizing the role of Earth Observation. It is well known that accessibility to desert regions of... more
In 2014, the Inaccessible and Remote Archaeological Landscapes (INARLAND) project began to explore new directions in Saharan archaeology, emphasizing the role of Earth Observation. It is well known that accessibility to desert regions of many northern African countries has always been limited, due to their physiography and climate. Yet, recently, access has been further reduced mainly due to political instability. Although political issues are not new to the area, current events have profoundly interrupted many existing archaeological projects and causing damage to a variety of sites, as reported by the media worldwide, as well as impacted on the development of new archaeological research and the safeguard of existing cultural heritage. However, the central Sahara is a favored scenario for remote sensing-based investigation of both anthropic and natural phenomena, due to extremely low vegetation cover and urbanization.
In our presentation, we will focus on two areas, one extending over the south-easternmost part of the Tassili n’Ajjer (southern Algeria), and the other covering the Wadi ash-Shati in the Libyan Fazzan. The cultural trajectories in the Tassili and in the Shati are quite similar and can be compared in order to track strategies of adaptation from the protohistorical nomadic pastoralists, to the advent of the Garamantian kingdom, up to the Islamic world and the current inhabitants. Therefore, we will show how multiple-resolution remote sensing based upon multispectral and panchromatic imagery (e.g., Corona, Landsat, ASTER, Worldview), can support the reconstruction of the human environment interactions in arid lands, complementing data collected from the field and implementing the knowledge of currently inaccessible heritage. For this purpose the Wadi ash-Shati, which has been the subject of field research in past years and has already displayed significant archaeological evidence ranging from historical to modern times, will be used as a control environment for the analysis of the southeastern region of the Tassili n’Ajjer plateau, which is still partially unknown, also due to its proximity to the international border between Libya and Algeria.
In our presentation, we will focus on two areas, one extending over the south-easternmost part of the Tassili n’Ajjer (southern Algeria), and the other covering the Wadi ash-Shati in the Libyan Fazzan. The cultural trajectories in the Tassili and in the Shati are quite similar and can be compared in order to track strategies of adaptation from the protohistorical nomadic pastoralists, to the advent of the Garamantian kingdom, up to the Islamic world and the current inhabitants. Therefore, we will show how multiple-resolution remote sensing based upon multispectral and panchromatic imagery (e.g., Corona, Landsat, ASTER, Worldview), can support the reconstruction of the human environment interactions in arid lands, complementing data collected from the field and implementing the knowledge of currently inaccessible heritage. For this purpose the Wadi ash-Shati, which has been the subject of field research in past years and has already displayed significant archaeological evidence ranging from historical to modern times, will be used as a control environment for the analysis of the southeastern region of the Tassili n’Ajjer plateau, which is still partially unknown, also due to its proximity to the international border between Libya and Algeria.
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In this paper we explore integrated approaches for merging the growing enthusiasm for Citizen Science with mainstream science in the field of Earth Observation (EO) for the preservation of cultural heritage. So far, this approach has been... more
In this paper we explore integrated approaches for merging the growing enthusiasm for Citizen Science with mainstream science in the field of Earth Observation (EO) for the preservation of cultural heritage. So far, this approach has been successfully tested for small-scale micro-tasking (such as assisting in the accurate location of heritage finds or photographed scenes, drawing artefacts by photo-masking or digitalisation of museum objects, among others). We seek to open the broad engaging of citizens as image interpreters and ground truth surveyors in a more regional approach that focuses on endangered cultural landscapes. To illustrate potential EO-based applications we introduce the case study of the Inaccessible and Remote Archaeological Landscapes (INARLAND) project, which goal is to emphasize the role of EO data in today’s threatened Saharan archaeology. We discuss how multiple-resolution and multi-temporal satellite-based interpretations (i.e. from TPM imagery to the exploitation of new Copernicus Sentinel data products) assisted by citizens can support the reconstruction of the human environment interactions in arid lands, complementing data collected from the field and implementing the knowledge of currently inaccessible or vanishing heritage. We wish to participate in the discussion of EO data management and applications for the preservation of cultural landscapes, for which both citizens and academics can adopt new roles in emerging challenges to respond to heritage preservation, thus fulfilling the universalistic perspectives of cultural heritage promoted by UNESCO
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Understanding how human societies adapted to environmental and climatic variability in the past is fundamental to face present and future climatic events, particularly in highly vulnerable regions. Archaeological research in marginal... more
Understanding how human societies adapted to environmental and climatic variability in the past is fundamental to face present and future climatic events, particularly in highly vulnerable regions. Archaeological research in marginal areas has revealed how humans reacted to changing ecological conditions by integrating short-term coping mechanisms and long-term adaptive strategies such as innovation, enhanced social networks, increased mobility and, ultimately, migration. The study of long-term subsistence strategies, coupled with palaeoecological and historical data, can inform on how past societies faced environmental degradation and uncertainty in water availability, while providing examples of sustainable land use strategies. Moreover, this long-term knowledge can then be used to inform policy-makers and successfully face future climatic events.
In this session we will reflect on these issues through diverse methodological approaches, including the study of regional geomorphological settings (through geoarchaeology and remote sensing), plant and animal management strategies (through archaeology) or the potential application of local traditional knowledge on a wider (regional) scale (through ethnography). We welcome case studies from vulnerable areas worldwide with diverse ecological settings, from arid and semi-arid regions where water scarcity poses a threat for agricultural development to regions where recurrent floods require intensive water management, such as the Amazon rainforest. Finally, in this session we will also focus on methodological issues involved in the application of historical and archaeological data to present-day concerns.
In this session we will reflect on these issues through diverse methodological approaches, including the study of regional geomorphological settings (through geoarchaeology and remote sensing), plant and animal management strategies (through archaeology) or the potential application of local traditional knowledge on a wider (regional) scale (through ethnography). We welcome case studies from vulnerable areas worldwide with diverse ecological settings, from arid and semi-arid regions where water scarcity poses a threat for agricultural development to regions where recurrent floods require intensive water management, such as the Amazon rainforest. Finally, in this session we will also focus on methodological issues involved in the application of historical and archaeological data to present-day concerns.
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A Monte-Carlo ray-trace model has been applied to simulated sparse vegetation desert canopies in an effort to quantify the spectral mixing (both linear and nonlinear) occurring as a result of radiative interactions between vegetation and... more
A Monte-Carlo ray-trace model has been applied to simulated sparse vegetation desert canopies in an effort to quantify the spectral mixing (both linear and nonlinear) occurring as a result of radiative interactions between vegetation and soil. This work is of interest as NASA is preparing to launch new instruments such as MISR and MODIS. MISR will observe each ground pixel from nine different directions in three visible channels and one near-infrared channel. It is desired to study angular variations in spectral mixing by quantifying the amount of nonlinear spectral mixing occurring in the MISR observing directions.
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This is a presentation introducing a workshop teaching a technique to generate digital models from LiDAR pointclouds for an archaeological use.
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The present study is conducted to simulate the spatial concentration of urban built up lands in Mysore City. In order to model the urban concentration, the method of Shannon entropy were utilized which gives degree of compactness or... more
The present study is conducted to simulate the spatial concentration of urban built up lands in Mysore City. In order to model the urban concentration, the method of Shannon entropy were utilized which gives degree of compactness or degree of dispersion. The formulae have brought to the Geographical Information System environment. Study used 3 set of remote sensing Landsat data with 11 years temporal resolution such as 1992, 2003 and 2014. The Urban built up land were extracted using the visual image interpretation and supervised classification scheme with set of sample signature file. Then 150m fishnet have created to define an equidistant zones. After all, Landscape metrics of Shannon entropy have computed and the Shannon entropy for the year 1992, 2003 and 2014 showed the value 0.99880, 0.96945 and 0.9437 respectively, which indicates the concentration of Urban built up lands is compacting year to year.