3 GIS AND REMOTE SENSING

3.1 Introduction

GIS and remote sensing techniques are widely used in studying and modelling the water
resources of the earth.

3.2 Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

GIS (geographic information systems) are computer models capable of assembling, storing,
manipulating and displaying maps and geographic data. Geographic data refers to data that
can be identified by its location.

Example of GIS models or softwares include:

(a) ArcVIEW e.g. ArcVIEW versions 1, 2 and 3 produced by ESRI. It is now phased out.
(b) ArcGIS - Latest version of ArcView also produced by ESRI (www.esri.com).
Common versions include ArcGIS 9.2 and 9.3. A recent update of ArcGIS is version
10.

(c) ESRI products are quite expensive and one has to subscribe to use them.

(d) Map info

(e) Quantum GIS (open source software i.e. it is free). It runs on Linux, Unix, Mac OSX,
Windows and Android and supports numerous vector, raster, and database formats
and functionalities. The latest release is QGIS 2.0
(f) AutoCAD
(g) GRASS GIS (Geographic Resources Analysis Support System) - a free, open source
geographical information system (GIS) capable of handling raster, topological vector,
image processing, and graphic data
(h) Google earth

Source of GIS data include:

 Maps e.g. soil map, topographic maps, streets, districts etc.
 Aerial photographs
 Satellite imagery
 Field observation e.g. GPS points.

3.3 Application of GIS is water resources management and engineering

There are many applications of GIS in water resources management, basin. These include:
 Defining the watershed and its hydrologic and hydraulic characteristics so that models
of rainfall-runoff processes can be applied to examine the impacts of land-use changes
 Mapping land-use and population demographics in support of water and wastewater
demand estimation procedures.
 Interpolating groundwater contaminant concentrations given sampled data at
observation wells spaced throughout an aquifer, or estimating snowpack amounts at
ungauged locations based on data obtained at gauged locations guided by factors of
elevation and exposure.
 GIS and Remote sensing techniques

 Managing public infrastructure, such as scheduling maintenance on a sewage

collection system, notifying residents of water-pipe rehabilitation work, or identifying
areas of potential low pressure during fire-response planning scenarios
 Finding the coincidence of factors, such as erosion-prone areas having a certain
combination of soil type, land cover, and slope.
 Monitoring the occurrences and intensities of severe thunderstorms and providing
tools for warning threatened populations of impending hazardous flood conditions
 Providing the logical network structure for coordinating simulation and optimization
models that schedule the interactions between basin water supplies, reservoirs,
diversions, and demands.

3.3.1 Main components of GIS

These include:
(a) A geographic database (GIS data): This is where the data is stored and retrieved

(b) GIS interface: For displaying and analysing GIS data

(c) GIS analysis tools: They are usually incorporated in the GIS interface. Examples
include spatial analysis tools , which provide a rich set of spatial analysis and
modeling tools for GIS data. With a spatial analysis tool, you can request for a GIS
map of a certain region.

3.3.2 GIS maps

A GIS map is made up of layers or a collection of geographical maps superimposed on each

other.

Map of wells

Map of rivers

Map of wetlands

Landuse map

This map is made of 4 thematic layers. Each layer contain wells locations, rivers, wetlands,
landuse maps respectively.

2
Dr. P. Nyenje
 GIS and Remote sensing techniques

3.3.3 GIS data types

GIS data in a layer may either be a Vector or a Raster based on how GIS data is stored.

Also called a Also called a surface

shape files data types

(a) Vector
Is all GIS data that has shape, size and location; Vector data or features are some
times called shape files because they have shapes.

A vector may be:

 a point - e.g. cities, schools, location of wells and mountains
 a line - e.g. roads, rivers and pipelines. These can also be points that have been
joined together
 a polygon - e.g. lakes, countries, landuse, boundaries of soil types

All points along a vector have X and Y coordinates which may be presented as:
 Latitudes and longitudes (units in degrees) e.g. 0° 32' N, 36° 15' E. 0° 32' N refers
to 0 degrees, 36 minutes North of the equator. This type of coordinate system is
called a geographic coordinate system.

 Grid coordinates (in meters) e.g. 0036412 N, 417876 E. Grid coordinates are
degree coordinates that have been projected on a plane surface. The most common
grid coordinate system used in Uganda is the UTM coordinate system.
The UTM coordinate system
UTM stands for Universal Transverse Mercator coordinate system. In this system,
the earth is projected on a plane surface and is divided into equal zones called
UTM zones. The first zone begins at the International Date Line (which is at 180°,
using the geographic coordinate system). The zones are numbered from west to
east from 1 to 60. Uganda is located in zone 36.

Eastings: Any point on earth can be described by its distance (in metres) east of
the origin (the easting’s value). The origin is an imaginary line lying 500,000
metres west of the zone's central meridian (also called the false eastings). For
Uganda’s zone 36, the central meridian is 33°. Any easting value greater than
500,000 meters indicates a point east of the central meridian. Any easting value
less than 500,000 meters indicates a point west of the central meridian. Easting
coordinates are usually followed with the letter E.

Northings: Any point on earth can also be described by its distance (in meters)
north of the origin (the northing’s value), the origin being the equator. Points
below the equator (southern hemisphere) have negative distances from the
equator. To avoid these negative values, points below the equator are usually
given a different origin which is the South Pole (10,007,543 meters from the
equator). Northing coordinates are usually followed with the letter N (for northern
hemisphere) or S (for southern hemisphere).

3
Dr. P. Nyenje
 GIS and Remote sensing techniques

Fig. Projection of the earth on a plane surface showing UTM zones.

Most spatial analysis tools in ArcGIS require that GIS data has been projected to a known
coordinate system such as the UTM coordinate system.

Vectors also have other data associated with them. E.g. A country shape file may have
other information such as population, capital city, average rainfall etc. A soil shape file
may have additional information on the soil types, parent rock, conductivity of soils etc.

Information about features or vectors is stored in a table called an attribute table or

simply attributes.

Example of an attribute table for landuse

4
Dr. P. Nyenje
 GIS and Remote sensing techniques

Common data Vector GIS file formats include:

 ESRI shape les (*.shp) Format used widely in various GIS softwares.
 Google KLM (*.klm) Format used in Google earth
 Geographical markup language (*.gml) is an XML based encoding standard for
geographic information developed by the OpenGIS Consortium (OGC).
 GPS Exchange Format (*.gpx) an XML based encoding for GPS data formats such as
Swaypoints, tracks, and routes.

(b) Raster

Here, an area is sub-divided into grid cells whereby each cell has a numeric value
representing the attribute of the earth's surface. Examples include: An elevation map, slope,
rainfall, wind speed. Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) are a type of raster GIS layer where
each cell has a value corresponding to its elevation.

Raster files have no distinct shape. Rather, a raster has a matrix of identically sized square
cells or grid cells. A raster map is also called a grid map.

(source:www. ESRI.com)

The figure below illustrates the difference between a raster and a vector.

Raster Vector

All spatial data in a GIS is georeferenced. I.e. they are defined by a known coordinate
referencing system e.g. UTM.

5
Dr. P. Nyenje
 GIS and Remote sensing techniques

3.3.4 Spatial analysis

Different types of spatial data analyses can be performed in GIS.

(a) Performing queries

This is one of the most important analysis tools. It involves asking GIS extract various
combinations of information for examination. To do this, we normally use database
query tools.

E.g. Which areas have elevations greater than 1000 m.a.s.l?

Which wells have [Cl] > 2000 mg/L. This query shows all wells with Cl>2000
Show all wetlands that are larger than 1 km2 and adjacent to industries.
Show all district roads which have not been maintained in 2 years.

(b) Map algebra - deriving maps

Map algebra involves combining map layers mathematically.

E.g. - For a precipitation map, we can have an equation that derive a runoff map.
Just multiply the precipitation map with the runoff coefficient.
- To derive an erosion map based on soil erodability, slope and rain intensity,
we can use the RUSLE equation.

(c) Modelling processes:

You can use models, scripts and a command line to perform analyses.

6
Dr. P. Nyenje
 GIS and Remote sensing techniques

3.4 Remote sensing and image processing

Remote sensing are ways of acquiring and processing images of the earth for use in GIS
software. Remote sensing is therefore the most important source of data used in GIS.

Remote sensing refers to earth observations from a distance. Examples of earth observations
include satellites and aerial photos from a plane. Naturally, our eyes are also remote sensors.

Remote sensing ideally involves the remote detection of variations in electromagnetic energy
(EM) emitted from certain features on earth.

Electro magnetic energy is detected using various sensors in various wave lengths. The
source of EM radiations is usually the SUN.

Various wave lengths of EM radiations are sensitive to various characteristics of terrain.

3.4.1 Electro-magnetic spectrum

The electromagnetic spectrum can be divided into several wavelength (frequency) regions,
among which only a narrow band from about 400 to 700 nm is visible to the human eyes.
Special sensors can detect wavelengths greater than 700nm or less than 400 nm (e.g.
satellites). Short wavelengths (e.g. UV) can be significantly absorbed by the atmosphere.
Hence, wavelengths of most significance to environmental remote sensing are the near red,
infrared and microwave bands. E.g. the red band is most absorbed by chlorophyll in plants.
Hence this band can be used to distinguish between vegetated and non-vegetated areas.

The Electro-magnetic spectrum

Example of EM sensors are:

(a) Our eyes

(b) Colour photograph cameras - e.g. aerial photos from a plane
(c) Video cameras recorders mounted on an aircraft.
(d) Multi-spectral scanners - They take images using different spectral bands e.g. blue,
green infrared etc. An example of this scanner is the Landsat satellite sensor (United
states). It provides multi-spectral imagery in seven spectral bands at a 30 meter
resolution. The Landsat Band 5, for example, is useful in determining soil and leaf
moisture differences.
7
Dr. P. Nyenje
 GIS and Remote sensing techniques

3.4.2 Satellites

Satellites can capture spatial data at different spectral resolutions or bands.

Examples of satellites which provide or sell earth images:

(a) Landsat satellites - A joint initiative between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and
NASA. One of the World's longest continuously acquired high resolution land remote
sensing data. Data is provided for free upon request (http://glovis.usgs.gov/).
(b) SPOT operated by a French consortium since 1985.
(c) NOAA-AVHRR - Advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) operated by
USA.
(d) RADARSAT- operated by Canadian space agency.
(e) Etc (read)

3.4.3 Digital image processing

Satellite data or images contain digital images with several spectral bands. These images
require processing to be properly interpreted.

Digital image processing involves:

(a) Image restoration
Correction and calibration of images so that they are true representation of the earth's
surface. Here distortions due to cloud cover, air particles, elevation etc are removed.

(b) Image enhancement

Modify images to optimise their visual appearance. Examples include: stretching
images to remove sleekness, generating composite images (i.e. generating color
composites) and digital filtering to remove image blur.

(c) Image classification

Computer assisted interpretation of images by extracting complex features from
digital imagery. This involves classifying or grouping areas with similar signatures
(also called unsupervised classification) or by classifying or grouping similar
signatures when you have prior knowledge of what is on the ground (also called
Supervised classification)

(d) Image transformation

Deriving new images as a result of some mathematical treatment of the raw image.
E.g. the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) is used to interpret vegetation
areas and principal components analysis (PCA), which produces new images that are
uncorrelated.

The NDVI index is calculated as follows:

NDVI = (NIR - R) / (NIR + R)

Where NIR = Near Infrared image (e.g. the Landsat TM band 4)

R = Red image (e.g. the Landsat TM band 3)

8
Dr. P. Nyenje
 GIS and Remote sensing techniques

Digital image processing software

There are a number of image processing software or remote sensing software. Examples are:

 IDRISI: An integrated geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing

software developed by Clark Labs at Clark University

 ILWIS - integrated land and water systems software developed by ITC in the
Netherlands (open source)

 ENVI - Environment for Visualizing Images. Advanced commercial software.

 ERDAS IMAGINE – A world leading remote sensing software.

 The image analysis tool for ArcGIS (in versions 10 and above).

Exercise: Describe one satellite sensor and the bands it can capture (use internet search)

Application of Remote Sensing in Water Resources Engineering

Field of application Useful interpreted Helpful in

Irrigation Engineering
Hydrology
Reservoir
Sedimentation
Flood monitoring
Water Resources
Project Planning
information
Crop area, yield, growth and Irrigation water requirements
water stressed areas,
Landuse, soil forest and rocks Runoff estimation, and its
in watershed. Landuse impacts from landuse change
changes
Plan view of reservoir extent Estimating sediment extent
at different times
Flood inundated areas Flood plain mapping
and zoning
Identification of wasteland, designing of a water
mapping of infrastructure resources project
features e.g. roads, based on the present
embankments, canals, etc. , conditions of the
mapping rivers project area

Suggested reference:
Johnson, Lynn E. Geographic information systems in water resources engineering. Publisher:
CRC Press; 1 edition (December 17, 2008). ISBN-10: 1420069136, ISBN-13: 978-
1420069136. 328 pages

9
Dr. P. Nyenje