scholarly journals Characterisation of Functional-Trait Dynamics at High Spatial Resolution in a Mediterranean Forest from Sentinel-2 and Ground-Truth Data

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1874
Author(s):  
Santiago Schauman ◽  
Aleixandre Verger ◽  
Iolanda Filella ◽  
Josep Peñuelas
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Spatial Heterogeneity ◽  
Photosynthetically Active Radiation ◽  
Functional Trait ◽  
Mediterranean Forest ◽  
Active Radiation ◽  
Vegetation Activity ◽  
Spatial Autoregressive ◽  
Topographic Aspect ◽  
Sentinel 2

The characterisation of functional-trait dynamics of vegetation from remotely sensed data complements the structural characterisation of ecosystems. In this study we characterised for the first time the spatial heterogeneity of the intra-annual dynamics of the fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (FAPAR) as a functional trait of the vegetation in Prades Mediterranean forest in Catalonia, Spain. FAPAR was derived from the Multispectral Instrument (MSI) on the Sentinel-2 satellite and validated by comparison with the ground measurements acquired in June 2017 at the annual peak of vegetation activity. The validation results showed that most of points were distributed along the 1:1 line, with no bias nor scattering: R2 = 0.93, p < 0.05; with a root mean square error of 0.03 FAPAR (4.3%). We classified the study area into nine vegetation groups with different dynamics of FAPAR using a methodology that is objective and repeatable over time. This functional classification based on the annual magnitude (FAPAR-M) and the seasonality (FAPAR-CV) from the data on one year (2016–2017) complements structural classifications. The internal heterogeneity of the FAPAR dynamics in each land-cover type is attributed to the environmental and to the specific species composition variability. A spatial autoregressive (SAR) model for the main type of land cover, evergreen holm oak forest (Quercus ilex), indicated that topographic aspect, slope, height, and the topographic aspect x slope interaction accounted for most of the spatial heterogeneity of the functional trait FAPAR-M, thus improving our understanding of the explanatory factors of the annual absorption of photosynthetically active radiation by the vegetation canopy for this ecosystem.

scholarly journals Remote Sensing of Grassland Biophysical Parameters in the Context of the Sentinel-2 Satellite Mission

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karolina Sakowska ◽  
Radoslaw Juszczak ◽  
Damiano Gianelle
Keyword(s):  
Photosynthetically Active Radiation ◽  
Solar Spectrum ◽  
Added Value ◽  
Estimation Accuracy ◽  
Least Squares Regression ◽  
Satellite Mission ◽  
Biophysical Parameters ◽  
Active Radiation ◽  
Reflectance Data ◽  
Sentinel 2

This study investigates the potential of the Sentinel-2 satellite for monitoring the seasonal changes in grassland total canopy chlorophyll content (CCC), fraction of photosynthetically active radiation absorbed by the vegetation canopy (FAPAR), and fraction of photosynthetically active radiation absorbed only by its photosynthesizing components (GFAPAR). Reflectance observations were collected on a continuous basis during growing seasons by means of a newly developed ASD-WhiteRef system. Two models using Sentinel-2 simulated data (linear regression-vegetation indices (VIs) approach and multiple regression (MR) reflectance approach) were tested to estimate vegetation biophysical parameters. To assess whether the use of full solar spectrum reflectance data is able to provide an added value in CCC and GFAPAR estimation accuracy, a third model based on partial least squares regression (PLSR) and the ASD-WhiteRef reflectance data was tested. The results showed that FAPAR remained quite stable during the reproduction and senescence stages, and no significant relationships between FAPAR and VIs were found. On the other hand, GFAPAR showed clearer seasonal trends. The comparison of the three models revealed no significant differences in the accuracies of CCC and GFAPAR predictions and demonstrated a strong contribution of SWIR bands to the explained variability of investigated parameters. The promising results highlight the potential of the Sentinel-2 satellite for retrieving biophysical parameters from space.

scholarly journals Towards Predictive Modeling of Sorghum Biomass Yields Using Fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation Derived from Sentinel-2 Satellite Imagery and Supervised Machine Learning Techniques

Agronomy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ephrem Habyarimana ◽  
Isabelle Piccard ◽  
Marcello Catellani ◽  
Paolo De Franceschi ◽  
Michela Dall’Agata
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Predictive Modeling ◽  
Aboveground Biomass ◽  
Photosynthetically Active Radiation ◽  
Supervised Machine Learning ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Active Radiation ◽  
Biomass Yields ◽  
Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation ◽  
Sentinel 2

Sorghum crop is grown under tropical and temperate latitudes for several purposes including production of health promoting food from the kernel and forage and biofuels from aboveground biomass. One of the concerns of policy-makers and sorghum growers is to cost-effectively predict biomass yields early during the cropping season to improve biomass and biofuel management. The objective of this study was to investigate if Sentinel-2 satellite images could be used to predict within-season biomass sorghum yields in the Mediterranean region. Thirteen machine learning algorithms were tested on fortnightly Sentinel-2A and Sentinel-2B estimates of the fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fAPAR) in combination with in situ aboveground biomass yields from demonstrative fields in Italy. A gradient boosting algorithm implementing the xgbtree method was the best predictive model as it was satisfactorily implemented anywhere from May to July. The best prediction time was the month of May followed by May–June and May–July. To the best of our knowledge, this work represents the first time Sentinel-2-derived fAPAR is used in sorghum biomass predictive modeling. The results from this study will help farmers improve their sorghum biomass business operations and policy-makers and extension services improve energy planning and avoid energy-related crises.

scholarly journals Integrating structure and function: mapping the hierarchical spatial heterogeneity of urban landscapes

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuguo Qian ◽  
Weiqi Zhou ◽  
Steward T. A. Pickett ◽  
Wenjuan Yu ◽  
Dingpeng Xiong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Spatial Heterogeneity ◽  
Urban Ecosystem ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Shenzhen City ◽  
Object Based ◽  
Level 3 ◽  
Industrial Zones ◽  
Level 2

Abstract Background Cities are social-ecological systems characterized by remarkably high spatial and temporal heterogeneity, which are closely related to myriad urban problems. However, the tools to map and quantify this heterogeneity are lacking. We here developed a new three-level classification scheme, by considering ecosystem types (level 1), urban function zones (level 2), and land cover elements (level 3), to map and quantify the hierarchical spatial heterogeneity of urban landscapes. Methods We applied the scheme using an object-based approach for classification using very high spatial resolution imagery and a vector layer of building location and characteristics. We used a top-down classification procedure by conducting the classification in the order of ecosystem types, function zones, and land cover elements. The classification of the lower level was based on the results of the higher level. We used an object-based methodology to carry out the three-level classification. Results We found that the urban ecosystem type accounted for 45.3% of the land within the Shenzhen city administrative boundary. Within the urban ecosystem type, residential and industrial zones were the main zones, accounting for 38.4% and 33.8%, respectively. Tree canopy was the dominant element in Shenzhen city, accounting for 55.6% over all ecosystem types, which includes agricultural and forest. However, in the urban ecosystem type, the proportion of tree canopy was only 22.6% because most trees were distributed in the forest ecosystem type. The proportion of trees was 23.2% in industrial zones, 2.2% higher than that in residential zones. That information “hidden” in the usual statistical summaries scaled to the entire administrative unit of Shenzhen has great potential for improving urban management. Conclusions This paper has taken the theoretical understanding of urban spatial heterogeneity and used it to generate a classification scheme that exploits remotely sensed imagery, infrastructural data available at a municipal level, and object-based spatial analysis. For effective planning and management, the hierarchical levels of landscape classification (level 1), the analysis of use and cover by urban zones (level 2), and the fundamental elements of land cover (level 3), each exposes different respects relevant to city plans and management.

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