scholarly journals Linking Terrestrial LiDAR Scanner and Conventional Forest Structure Measurements with Multi-Modal Satellite Data

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kalkidan Mulatu ◽  
Mathieu Decuyper ◽  
Benjamin Brede ◽  
Lammert Kooistra ◽  
Johannes Reiche ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Forest Structure ◽  
Structural Parameters ◽  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Structure Parameters ◽  
Moisture Index ◽  
Infrared Band ◽  
Terrestrial Lidar ◽  
Red Edge ◽  
Sentinel 2

Obtaining information on vertical forest structure requires detailed data acquisition and analysis which is often performed at a plot level. With the growing availability of multi-modal satellite remote sensing (SRS) datasets, their usability towards forest structure estimation is increasing. We assessed the relationship of PlanetScope-, Sentinel-2-, and Landsat-7-derived vegetation indices (VIs), as well as ALOS-2 PALSAR-2- and Sentinel-1-derived backscatter intensities with a terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) and conventionally measured forest structure parameters acquired from 25 field plots in a tropical montane cloud forest in Kafa, Ethiopia. Results showed that canopy gap-related forest structure parameters had their highest correlation (|r| = 0.4 − 0.48) with optical sensor-derived VIs, while vegetation volume-related parameters were mainly correlated with red-edge- and short-wave infrared band-derived VIs (i.e., inverted red-edge chlorophyll index (IRECI), normalized difference moisture index), and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) backscatters (|r| = −0.57 − 0.49). Using stepwise multi-linear regression with the Akaike information criterion as evaluation parameter, we found that the fusion of different SRS-derived variables can improve the estimation of field-measured structural parameters. The combination of Sentinel-2 VIs and SAR backscatters was dominant in most of the predictive models, while IRECI was found to be the most common predictor for field-measured variables. The statistically significant regression models were able to estimate cumulative plant area volume density with an R2 of 0.58 and with the lowest relative root mean square error (RRMSE) value (0.23). Mean gap and number of gaps were also significantly estimated, but with higher RRMSE (R2 = 0.52, RRMSE = 1.4, R2 = 0.68, and RRMSE = 0.58, respectively). The models showed poor performance in predicting tree density and number of tree species (R2 = 0.28, RRMSE = 0.41, and R2 = 0.21, RRMSE = 0.39, respectively). This exploratory study demonstrated that SRS variables are sensitive to retrieve structural differences of tropical forests and have the potential to be used to upscale biodiversity relevant field-based forest structure estimates.

scholarly journals Mapping Height and Aboveground Biomass of Mangrove Forests on Hainan Island Using UAV-LiDAR Sampling

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (18) ◽  
pp. 2156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dezhi Wang ◽  
Bo Wan ◽  
Penghua Qiu ◽  
Zejun Zuo ◽  
Run Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  
Hainan Island ◽  
Average Height ◽  
Mangrove Forests ◽  
Infrared Band ◽  
Red Edge ◽  
Extensive Field ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Shortwave Infrared ◽  
Sentinel 2

Hainan Island is the second-largest island in China and has the most species-diverse mangrove forests in the country. To date, the height and aboveground ground biomass (AGB) of the mangrove forests on Hainan Island are unknown, partly as a result of the challenges faced during extensive field sampling in mangrove habitats (intertidal mudflats inundated by periodic seawater). Therefore, this study used a low-cost UAV-LiDAR (light detection and ranging sensor mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle) system as a sampling tool and Sentinel-2 imagery as auxiliary data to estimate and map the mangrove height and AGB on Hainan Island. Hainan Island has 3697.02 hectares of mangrove forests with an average patch area of approximately 1 ha. The results show that the mangroves on whole Hainan Island have an average height of 6.99 m, a total AGB of 474,199.31 Mg and an AGB density of 128.27 Mg ha−1. The AGB hot spots are located in Qinglan Harbor and the south of Dongzhai Harbor. The proposed height model LiDAR-S2 performed well with an R2 of 0.67 and an RMSE (root mean square error) of 1.90 m; the proposed AGB model G~LiDAR~S2 performed better (an R2 of 0.62 and an RMSE of 50.36 Mg ha−1) than the traditional AGB model G~S2 that directly related ground plots and Sentinel-2 data. The results also indicate that the LiDAR metrics describing the canopy’s thickness and its top and bottom characteristics are the most important variables for mangrove AGB estimation. For the Sentinel-2 indices, the red-edge and shortwave infrared features, especially the red-edge 1 and shortwave infrared Band 11 features, play the most important roles in estimating mangrove AGB and height. In conclusion, this paper presents the first mangrove height and AGB maps of Hainan Island and demonstrates the feasibility of using UAV-LiDAR as a sampling tool for mangrove forests.

scholarly journals Forest Canopy Height and Gaps from Multiangular BRDF, Assessed with Airborne LiDAR Data

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (21) ◽  
pp. 2566 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiang Wang ◽  
Wenge Ni-Meister
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Vegetation Structure ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Structural Parameters ◽  
Remote Sensing Data ◽  
Tree Height ◽  
Lidar Data ◽  
Structure Parameters ◽  
Infrared Band ◽  
Gap Fraction

Both vegetation multi-angular and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) remote sensing data are indirectly and directly linked with 3D vegetation structure parameters, such as the tree height and vegetation gap fraction, which are critical elements in above-ground biomass and light profiles for photosynthesis estimation. LiDAR, particularly LiDAR using waveform data, provides accurate estimates of these structural parameters but suffers from not enough spatial samplings. Structural parameters retrieved from multiangular imaging data through the inversion of physical models have larger uncertainties. This study searches for an analytical approach to fuse LiDAR and multiangular data. We explore the relationships between vegetation structure parameters derived from airborne vegetation LiDAR data and multiangular data and present a new potential angle vegetation index to retrieve the tree height and gap fraction using multi-angular data in Howland Forest, Maine. The BRDF (bidirectional reflectance distribution factor) index named NDMM (normalized difference between the maximum and minimum reflectance) linearly increases with the tree height and decreases with the gap fraction. In addition, these relationships are also dependent on the wavelength, tree species, and stand density. The NDMM index performs better in conifer (R = 0.451 for tree height and R = 0.472 for the gap fraction using the near infrared band) than in deciduous and mixed forests. It is superior in sparse (R = 0.569 for tree height and R = 0.604 for the gap fraction using the near infrared band) compared to dense forest. Moreover, the NDMM index is more strongly related to tree height and the gap fraction at the near infrared band than at the three visible bands. This study sheds light on the possibility of using multiangular data to map vegetation’s structural parameters in larger regions for carbon cycle studies through the fusion of LiDAR and multiangular remote sensing data.

scholarly journals Assessing Leaf Biomass of Agave sisalana Using Sentinel-2 Vegetation Indices

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 233
Author(s):  
Ilja Vuorinne ◽  
Janne Heiskanen ◽  
Petri K. E. Pellikka
Keyword(s):  
Near Infrared ◽  
Vegetation Indices ◽  
Fibre Production ◽  
Additive Models ◽  
Leaf Biomass ◽  
Ground Vegetation ◽  
Perennial Crop ◽  
Red Edge ◽  
Agave Sisalana ◽  
Sentinel 2

Biomass is a principal variable in crop monitoring and management and in assessing carbon cycling. Remote sensing combined with field measurements can be used to estimate biomass over large areas. This study assessed leaf biomass of Agave sisalana (sisal), a perennial crop whose leaves are grown for fibre production in tropical and subtropical regions. Furthermore, the residue from fibre production can be used to produce bioenergy through anaerobic digestion. First, biomass was estimated for 58 field plots using an allometric approach. Then, Sentinel-2 multispectral satellite imagery was used to model biomass in an 8851-ha plantation in semi-arid south-eastern Kenya. Generalised Additive Models were employed to explore how well biomass was explained by various spectral vegetation indices (VIs). The highest performance (explained deviance = 76%, RMSE = 5.15 Mg ha−1) was achieved with ratio and normalised difference VIs based on the green (R560), red-edge (R740 and R783), and near-infrared (R865) spectral bands. Heterogeneity of ground vegetation and resulting background effects seemed to limit model performance. The best performing VI (R740/R783) was used to predict plantation biomass that ranged from 0 to 46.7 Mg ha−1 (mean biomass 10.6 Mg ha−1). The modelling showed that multispectral data are suitable for assessing sisal leaf biomass at the plantation level and in individual blocks. Although these results demonstrate the value of Sentinel-2 red-edge bands at 20-m resolution, the difference from the best model based on green and near-infrared bands at 10-m resolution was rather small.

scholarly journals Estimating Aboveground Biomass Using Sentinel-2 MSI Data and Ensemble Algorithms for Grassland in the Shengjin Lake Wetland, China

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 1595
Author(s):  
Chunhua Li ◽  
Lizhi Zhou ◽  
Wenbin Xu
Keyword(s):  
Aboveground Biomass ◽  
Carbon Accounting ◽  
Dynamic Monitoring ◽  
Gradient Boosting ◽  
Biomass Estimation ◽  
Floodplain Wetlands ◽  
Red Edge ◽  
Extreme Gradient Boosting ◽  
Ensemble Algorithms ◽  
Sentinel 2

Wetland vegetation aboveground biomass (AGB) directly indicates wetland ecosystem health and is critical for water purification, carbon cycle, and biodiversity conservation. Accurate AGB estimation is essential for the monitoring and supervision of ecosystems, especially in seasonal floodplain wetlands. This paper explored the capability of spectral and texture features from the Sentinel-2 Multispectral Instrument (MSI) for modeling grassland AGB using random forest (RF) and extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) algorithms in Shengjin Lake wetland (a Ramsar site). We use five-fold cross-validation to verify the model effectiveness. The results indicated that the RF and XGBoost models had a robust and efficient performance (with root mean square error (RMSE) of 126.571 g·m−2 and R2 of 0.844 for RF, RMSE of 112.425 g·m−2 and R2 of 0.869 for XGBoost), and the XGBoost models, by contrast, performed better. Both traditional and red-edge vegetation indices (VIs) obtained satisfactory results of AGB estimation (RMSE = 127.936 g·m−2, RMSE = 125.879 g·m−2 in XGBoost models, respectively), with the red-edge VIs contributed more to the AGB models. Moreover, we selected eight gray-level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) textures calculated by four processing window sizes using the mean value of four offsets, and further analyzed the results of three analysis sets. Textures derived from traditional and red-edge bands using a 7 × 7 window size performed better in biomass estimation. This finding suggested that textures derived from the traditional bands were as important as the red-edge bands. The introduction of textures moderately improved the accuracy of modeling AGB, whereas the use of textures alo ne was not satisfactory. This research demonstrated that using the Sentinel-2 MSI and the two ensemble algorithms is an effective method for long-term dynamic monitoring and assessment of grass AGB in seasonal floodplain wetlands, which can support sustainable management and carbon accounting of wetland ecosystems.

scholarly journals Status of Phenological Research Using Sentinel-2 Data: A Review

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (17) ◽  
pp. 2760
Author(s):  
Gourav Misra ◽  
Fiona Cawkwell ◽  
Astrid Wingler
Keyword(s):  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Temporal Frequency ◽  
Short Wave ◽  
Current State ◽  
Red Edge ◽  
Natural Grasslands ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Normalised Difference Vegetation Index ◽  
Satellite Sensors ◽  
Sentinel 2

Remote sensing of plant phenology as an indicator of climate change and for mapping land cover has received significant scientific interest in the past two decades. The advancing of spring events, the lengthening of the growing season, the shifting of tree lines, the decreasing sensitivity to warming and the uniformity of spring across elevations are a few of the important indicators of trends in phenology. The Sentinel-2 satellite sensors launched in June 2015 (A) and March 2017 (B), with their high temporal frequency and spatial resolution for improved land mapping missions, have contributed significantly to knowledge on vegetation over the last three years. However, despite the additional red-edge and short wave infra-red (SWIR) bands available on the Sentinel-2 multispectral instruments, with improved vegetation species detection capabilities, there has been very little research on their efficacy to track vegetation cover and its phenology. For example, out of approximately every four papers that analyse normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) or enhanced vegetation index (EVI) derived from Sentinel-2 imagery, only one mentions either SWIR or the red-edge bands. Despite the short duration that the Sentinel-2 platforms have been operational, they have proved their potential in a wide range of phenological studies of crops, forests, natural grasslands, and other vegetated areas, and in particular through fusion of the data with those from other sensors, e.g., Sentinel-1, Landsat and MODIS. This review paper discusses the current state of vegetation phenology studies based on the first five years of Sentinel-2, their advantages, limitations, and the scope for future developments.

scholarly journals Spaceborne Estimation of Leaf Area Index in Cotton, Tomato, and Wheat Using Sentinel-2

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 505
Author(s):  
Gregoriy Kaplan ◽  
Offer Rozenstein
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Leaf Area Index ◽  
Leaf Area ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Estimation Performance ◽  
Red Edge ◽  
Sentinel 2

Satellite remote sensing is a useful tool for estimating crop variables, particularly Leaf Area Index (LAI), which plays a pivotal role in monitoring crop development. The goal of this study was to identify the optimal Sentinel-2 bands for LAI estimation and to derive Vegetation Indices (VI) that are well correlated with LAI. Linear regression models between time series of Sentinel-2 imagery and field-measured LAI showed that Sentinel-2 Band-8A—Narrow Near InfraRed (NIR) is more accurate for LAI estimation than the traditionally used Band-8 (NIR). Band-5 (Red edge-1) showed the lowest performance out of all red edge bands in tomato and cotton. A novel finding was that Band 9 (Water vapor) showed a very high correlation with LAI. Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 11, and 12 were saturated at LAI ≈ 3 in cotton and tomato. Bands 6, 7, 8, 8A, and 9 were not saturated at high LAI values in cotton and tomato. The tomato, cotton, and wheat LAI estimation performance of ReNDVI (R2 = 0.79, 0.98, 0.83, respectively) and two new VIs (WEVI (Water vapor red Edge Vegetation Index) (R2 = 0.81, 0.96, 0.71, respectively) and WNEVI (Water vapor narrow NIR red Edge Vegetation index) (R2 = 0.79, 0.98, 0.79, respectively)) were higher than the LAI estimation performance of the commonly used NDVI (R2 = 0.66, 0.83, 0.05, respectively) and other common VIs tested in this study. Consequently, reNDVI, WEVI, and WNEVI can facilitate more accurate agricultural monitoring than traditional VIs.

scholarly journals Urban Bare Land Classification Using NDBaI Index Based on Combination of Sentinel 2 MSI and Landsat 8 Multiresolution Images

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Trinh Le Hung
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Satellite Image ◽  
Urban Land ◽  
Landsat 8 ◽  
Land Classification ◽  
Infrared Band ◽  
Urban Land Cover ◽  
Bare Land ◽  
Sentinel 2

The classification of urban land cover/land use is a difficult task due to the complexity in the structure of the urban surface. This paper presents the method of combining of Sentinel 2 MSI and Landsat 8 multi-resolution satellite image data for urban bare land classification based on NDBaI index. Two images of Sentinel 2 and Landsat 8 acquired closely together, were used to calculate the NDBaI index, in which sortware infrared band (band 11) of Sentinel 2 MSI image and thermal infrared band (band 10) of Landsat 8 image were used to improve the spatial resolution of NDBaI index. The results obtained from two experimental areas showed that, the total accuracy of classifying bare land from the NDBaI index which calculated by the proposed method increased by about 6% compared to the method using the NDBaI index, which is calculated using only Landsat 8 data. The results obtained in this study contribute to improving the efficiency of using free remote sensing data in urban land cover/land use classification.

scholarly journals Active versus passive restoration: Recovery of cloud forest structure, diversity and soil condition in abandoned pastures

2018 ◽  
Vol 117 ◽  
pp. 50-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alma L. Trujillo-Miranda ◽  
Tarin Toledo-Aceves ◽  
Fabiola López-Barrera ◽  
Patricia Gerez-Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Forest Structure ◽  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Soil Condition ◽  
Passive Restoration ◽  
Structure Diversity

scholarly journals Quantifying Uncertainty and Bridging the Scaling Gap in the Retrieval of Leaf Area Index by Coupling Sentinel-2 and UAV Observations

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 1843 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Revill ◽  
Anna Florence ◽  
Alasdair MacArthur ◽  
Stephen Hoad ◽  
Robert Rees ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Heterogeneity ◽  
Leaf Area Index ◽  
Leaf Area ◽  
Growth Stages ◽  
Two Stage ◽  
Area Index ◽  
Field Surveys ◽  
Red Edge ◽  
Calibration Approach ◽  
Sentinel 2

Leaf area index (LAI) estimates can inform decision-making in crop management. The European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellite, with observations in the red-edge spectral region, can monitor crops globally at sub-field spatial resolutions (10–20 m). However, satellite LAI estimates require calibration with ground measurements. Calibration is challenged by spatial heterogeneity and scale mismatches between field and satellite measurements. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), generating high-resolution (cm-scale) LAI estimates, provide intermediary observations that we use here to characterise uncertainty and reduce spatial scaling discrepancies between Sentinel-2 observations and field surveys. We use a novel UAV multispectral sensor that matches Sentinel-2 spectral bands, flown in conjunction with LAI ground measurements. UAV and field surveys were conducted on multiple dates—coinciding with different wheat growth stages—that corresponded to Sentinel-2 overpasses. We compared chlorophyll red-edge index (CIred-edge) maps, derived from the Sentinel-2 and UAV platforms. We used Gaussian processes regression machine learning to calibrate a UAV model for LAI, based on ground data. Using the UAV LAI, we evaluated a two-stage calibration approach for generating robust LAI estimates from Sentinel-2. The agreement between Sentinel-2 and UAV CIred-edge values increased with growth stage—R2 ranged from 0.32 (stem elongation) to 0.75 (milk development). The CIred-edge variance between the two platforms was more comparable later in the growing season due to a more homogeneous and closed wheat canopy. The single-stage Sentinel-2 LAI calibration (i.e., direct calibration from ground measurements) performed poorly (mean R2 = 0.29, mean NRMSE = 17%) when compared to the two-stage calibration using the UAV data (mean R2 = 0.88, mean NRMSE = 8%). The two-stage approach reduced both errors and biases by >50%. By upscaling ground measurements and providing more representative model training samples, UAV observations provide an effective and viable means of enhancing Sentinel-2 wheat LAI retrievals. We anticipate that our UAV calibration approach to resolving spatial heterogeneity would enhance the retrieval accuracy of LAI and additional biophysical variables for other arable crop types and a broader range of vegetation cover types.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document