REMOTE SENSING

PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATIONS

 Remote Sensing

Definition
Science and art of obtaining information about an object, area or
phenomenon through an analysis of data acquired by a device
that is not in direct contact with the area, object or phenomenon
under investigation.

Lillesand, Thomas M. and Ralph W. Kiefer, “Remote Sensing and Image

Interpretation” John Wiley and Sons, Inc, 1979, p. 1
Remote Sensing
“the art, science, and technology of obtaining
reliable information about physical objects and
the environment, through the process of
recording, measuring and interpreting imagery
and digital representations of energy patterns
derived from noncontact sensor systems”
 History of Remote Sensing
1609 - Invention of the telescope

Galileo
 History of Remote Sensing
1859 - First aerial photographer
Gaspard Felix Tournachon, also known as Nadar

1862 - US Army balloon corp

 History of Remote Sensing
1908 - First photos from an airplane

1914-1918 - World War I

First flight, Wright Bros., Dec. 1903
COMPONENTS OF REMOTE SENSING

Electromagnetic Radiation(EMR)
Sensors
Sensor carrying platforms
 Electromagnetic Radiation(EMR)

Radiation is one of the three commonly recognised

modes of transference of energy, the others being
conduction, and transmission.
Radiation is unique among the all in that radiated
energy can be transferred across free space as well as
through a medium such as air.
Thus sunlight a form of radiant energy crosses the
empty space between the sun and the earth. The
radiant energy is called Electromagnetic energy in
recognition of the fact that it has both electric and
magnetic components.
Electromagnetic waves are energy transported through space in the form of
periodic disturbances of electric and magnetic fields. All electromagnetic
waves travel through space at the same speed, c = 2.99792458 x 108 m/s,
commonly known as the speed of light. An electromagnetic wave is
characterized by a frequency and a wavelength. These two quantities are
related to the speed of light by the equation,

speed of light = frequency x wavelength

 This chart illustrates how visible colors of light can
represent frequencies of electromagnetic radiation
that the human eye can not “see”.

http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/false_color.html
The frequency (and hence, the wavelength) of an
electromagnetic wave depends on its source.
There is a wide range of frequency encountered in
our physical world, ranging from the low frequency
of the electric waves generated by the power
transmission lines to the very high frequency of the
gamma rays originating from the atomic nuclei.
This wide frequency range of electromagnetic
waves constitute the Electromagnetic Spectrum.
 The Electromagnetic 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.
How to remotely sense..
 SENSORS USED IN REMOTE SENSING

Sensors may be classified as active or passive, image or non-image

forming, commercial or military. An active sensor provides its own
source of illumination, whereas the passive sensor does not.
Photographic camera is a passive sensor when used in sunlight,
while a camera with flash bulb is active sensor. A radar and a laser
altimeter are active sensors.
Passive sensors can only be used to detect energy when the
naturally occurring energy is available. For all reflected energy, this
can only take place during the time when the sun is illuminating
the Earth.
There is no reflected energy available from the sun at night.
Energy that is naturally emitted (such as thermal infrared) can be
detected day or night, as long as the amount of energy is large
enough to be recorded.
Active sensors, transmit short bursts or 'pulses' of
electromagnetic energy in the direction of interest and record the
origin and strength of the backscatter received from objects
within the system's field of view.
Advantages for active sensors include the ability to obtain
measurements anytime, regardless of the time of day or season.
Active sensors can be used for examining wavelengths that are
not sufficiently provided by the sun, such as microwaves, or to
better control the way a target is illuminated.
However, active systems require the generation of a fairly large
amount of energy to adequately illuminate targets. Some
examples of active sensors are Radar and laser.
Passive sensors - optical, thermal, and microwave - rely on
receiving the naturally emitted or the sun's reflected energy from
the Earth's surface and can therefore image only during the
daytime
Active sensors
 Active sensors

Radar Laser
Passive sensors
Passive sensors
 REMOTE SENSING SYSTEM

A: Source of EMR
B: Electromagnetic radiation (EMR)
C: Object of interest
D: Sensor
E: Transmission to receiver(s)
F: Data products
G: Results of analyses
 Sensor carrying platforms

The base, stationary or moving, on which remote sensors

are mounted is called a remote sensing platform. The
remote sensing platforms range fro a camera on a tripod
or a balloons, helicopters, aircrafts, rockets and
spacecrafts.
.
 Remote Sensing Platforms

- Ground based
- Aircraft – Aerial photograph
- Satellite
- Space shuttle (NASA)
 The Aerial Photograph

• Aerial photographs are a very useful

source of data for environmental
surveys. They have applications in:
Topographic surveying
• Topographic surveying
• Geomorphology
• Geology and resource surveys
• Soil surveys
• Land use and crop management
• Urban and/or industrial
development
• Archaeology
 A suitable altitude can be chosen to optimize resolution and
coverage area. Commercially available aircraft can reach an
altitude of 15 km. Aircraft can be equipped with black and white,
colour or colour infrared (CIR) photographic equipment,
multispectral scanners or active sensors such as radar.

The main disadvantages of remote sensing from aircraft are the

instability of the platform, the limited geographic coverage (due
to the relatively low altitude of the aircraft), the high cost and
the dependence on weather conditions. This method, therefore,
is used mainly for time- critical missions. When the mission
requires repetitive imaging of the same area, the significantly
lower access cost of satellite data generally is preferred.
 Satellite
With the use of satellites as remote sensing
platforms it has been possible to overcome
some of the difficulties faced in remote
sensing with aircraft.
Satellites can monitor the entire earth surface
on a periodic basis, covering a sizeable section
on each change.
ORBITS

Geostationary orbit Near Polar orbit

(appr.36.000 km) (appr. 500-1000 km)
 MAJOR EARTH OBSERVING
SATELLITES
Landsat
SPOT
Ikonos
AVHRR
Seawifs
GOES
Meteosat
Terra EOS Satellite (ASTER, MODIS,
CERES, MOPITT, MISR
 LANDSAT
•Band Width: 185 km
• Repeat Cycle 16 days
• Orbit Altitude: 705 km
• Equatorial Crossing: at around 10 a.m.
local solar time
 Satellite orbits

“Sun-synchronous” “Geostationary”
Land monitoring Weather satellites
~ 700 km altitude ~ 30,000 km altitude
 Satellite orbits
Geostationary / geosynchronous : 36,000 km above the equator,
stays vertically above the same spot, rotates with earth - weather
images, e.g. GOES (Geostat. Operational Env. Satellite)
 Sensor groups
Multi-spectral sensors record bands in multiple wavelengths:
Visible
Near IR
Mid IR
Thermal
Microwave

And at different spatial resolutions:

Low
Medium
High
Very high

Many satellites carry multiple sensors with different resolutions

Some sensors have more than one resolution
 The Importance of Remote Sensing
• Large amounts of data needed, and Remote
Sensing can provide it

• Reduces manual field work dramatically

• Allows recovery of data for regions difficult or

impossible to reach:
– Open ocean
– Hazardous terrain (high mountains, extreme
weather areas, etc.)
– Ocean depths
– Atmosphere

• Allows for the collection of much more data in

a shorter amount of time
– Leads to increased land coverage AND
– Increase ground resolution of a GIS
 The Importance of Remote Sensing

• Digital Imagery greatly enhances a GIS

– DIRECTLY: Imagery can serve as a visual aid
– INDIRECTLY: Can serves as a source to derive information
such as…
• Land use/land cover
• Atmospheric emissions
• Vegetation
• Water bodies
• Cloud cover
• Change detection (including sea ice, coastlines, sea levels, etc.)
Applications of Remote Sensing

• Images serve as base maps

• Observe or measure properties or conditions

of the land, oceans, and atmosphere

• Map spatial distribution of “features”

• Record spatial changes

Change Detection - Flooding

Landsat imagery of the 1993 Mississippi flood

Monitoring Weather

GOES-8 Water Vapor

Monitoring Sea Surface Temperature
Change Detection - Urban Spread