GEO424 Lect29 TIR PDF

Thermal Remote Sensing
Technically, TIR radiation is anything between 3500

and 20000 nm (3.5-20 µm), but in practice most
satellites work between 8000 and 13000 nm (8-13 µm)
GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

 Lots of applications, especially in water!
Torgersen et al 2001 (on D2L)

 What is a black body? (remember lab 1?)
 an idealized physical object that absorbs all
incident EMR, regardless of frequency or
direction
 A black body emits EMR based on its
temperature alone (not shape or what it’s
made of)

 Kinetic Temperature
 Concentration of kinetic heat, measured
by a thermometer in contact with the
object.
 Radiant Temperature
 Concentration of radiant flux that can be
sensed remotely. Also known as
Apparent Temperature.

 All matter above absolute zero (0 Kelvin or
-273 oC) continuously emits EMR
 The amount of energy emitted is a function
of the fourth power of the kinetic
temperature (Stefan-Boltzmann Law):
 M = ε σ T4
M = total radiant exitance, W m-2
ε = emissivity
σ = Stefan-Boltzmann constant,
5.6697 x 10-8 W m-2 K-4
T = absolute temperature (Kelvin)
Kelvin = Celsius + 273.15

 Worked Example of the S-B Law
• Assume ambient temperature = 300 K and that a
blackbody (ε = 1.0) exhibits a 1% temperature
increase above the ambient conditions:
300 K → 303 K
• M = εσ T 4
• M = (5.6697 x 10-8 W m-2 K-4) * (300 K)4
= (σ) * (8.1 x 109) = 459.25 W m-2
• M = (5.6697 x 10-8 W m-2 K-4) * (303 K)4
= (σ) * (8.4289 x 109) = 477.89 W m-2
• 459.25 W m-2 → 477.89 W m-2
 a 4 % increase in radiant flux

 Wien’s Displacement Law
λ (max) =
2898 µm K
Tkinetic (Kelvin)
λ (max) = wavelength (µm) of maximum spectral exitance
Wien's displacement constant = 2897.7721 ± 0.0026 µm K

The NIST Reference on Constants, Units and Uncertainty,
http://physics.nist.gov/cuu/Constants/index.html

Wien’s Law:
as temperature
increases, the
wavelength of
maximum exitance
decreases
0.5 µm 10 µm
@ 6000 K @ 290 K

 Emissivity (what if it’s not a black body?)
Exitance of an object at λ and Tkelvin

ε(λ) = Exitance of a blackbody at λ and T
kelvin
ε ranges from 0 to 1.0
Blackbody: ε = 1.0
Graybody: ε < 1.0, but constant with λ
Selective radiator: ε < 1.0, but varies with λ

(a selective radiator)
Graybody

 Emissivity
 Most materials at the Earth’s surface have
temperatures < 300 K, so their radiant exitance is
dominantly in the thermal infrared portion of the
spectrum.
 As such, emissivity (ε) is typically given only for

TIR wavelengths.

Kuenzer & Dech 2013

fluke.com

 Compared at the same wavelength, emissivity
and reflectance are inversely related
 Polished metals have very high reflectance in the TIR
(and other wavelengths); their emissivity is very low.
ε
Polished aluminum 0.06
Silver 0.03
Gold 0.02
 Water has very low reflectance in the TIR (and other

wavelengths); its emissivity is very high (ε > 0.95).

 Challenges
1. Radiant vs. Kinetic temperature (not 1:1)
2. Nothing in real life is a ‘black body’ radiator
3. Many things are selective radiators (emissivity changes
with λ)
4. Where we can sense is limited by the atmospheric
window in the thermal (8-13 µm)
5. We can only sense the top surface of objects
6. Atmospheric interference
 Opportunities
1. Can see things we can’t see in the optical range
2. Lots of good science has been done to address
challenges

 Water, ice, and snow
 ε ≈ 0.94 to 0.99 across the thermal infrared region
 Snow is unusual because it has high reflectance in the
VIS-NIR region, but very low reflectance in the SWIR
and TIR
Based on Salisbury, J. W., D’Aria, D. M., and Wald, A. 1994.

Measurements of thermal infrared spectral reflectance
of frost, snow, and ice,
J. Geophys. Res., 99, 24235–24240.

Distilled
WaterWater Sample Water UCSB MODIS
(Distilled)
Seawater
Emissivity
Library
Landsat 8 TIR bands
10.6-11.19 and 11.5-12.51
Ice Snow
Snow
Note the y-axes!
http://www.icess.ucsb.edu/modis/EMIS/html/em.html
 Soils and Minerals
 Exhibit strong spectral absorption features (i.e., many are
selective radiators)
 Quartz sand displays strong absorption features between
8 and 10 µm that depend on the grain size.
 The quartz sand signature in the 3 to 5 µm region
depends strongly on its water and organic content.
Dryer soils with low OM content have smaller
emissivities.

Typical
quartz
absorption
feature
http://www.icess.ucsb.edu/modis/EMIS/html/em.html
 Vegetation
 Green vegetation typically has a very high emissivity
because it is structured and contains water.
 Senescent (dry) vegetation has a more variable
emissivity, especially in the 3 to 5 µm region, which
depends on the type and structure of the cover type
and its water content.

Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus
leaf
Maple Oak
leaf
leaf
Maple Oak
PinePine Dry Grass

needles
Dry Grass

Schedule to deploy on the ISS in 2018

5 bands in the 8-12.5 nm range

 Landscape emissivity
 The emissivity of land surfaces in the 10.0 - 12.5 µm
band slowly varies with wavelength and ranges
from 0.94 - 0.98.
 A reasonable estimate of emissivity for vegetation-soil
systems with an LAI greater than 0.5 is 0.97 ± 0.03.
 Thus, associated uncertainties in temperature
measurements in the 10.0 - 12.5 µm band are usually
less than 1 to 2o C.
Gillies et al. 1993. Workshop on Thermal Remote Sensing of the Energy and Water Balance Over
Vegetation in Conjunction with Other Sensors. September 20-24, 1993. la Londe les Maures, France.

 Landscape emissivity
Snyder, W., Wan, Z. , Zhang, Y. and Feng, Y. 1998. Classification-based emissivity for land surface
temperature measurement from space. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 19 (14): 2753 – 2774.
 Atmospheric Interactions in the TIR

 Atmospheric transmittance in the TIR
 Two major TIR “windows”
 3.4 – 4.2 µm
 8.1 – 13.2 µm
 One minor TIR “window”

 4.6 – 4.9 µm

 Diurnal Trad cycles

 TIR imagery interpretation clues
 By day, water presents a cooler radiant
temperature compared to the surrounding
landscape, while at night water presents a
warmer radiant temperature compared to its
surroundings. Why?
 Water has the highest thermal capacity (ability to
store heat) of all landscape substances. So in
the daytime, water bodies stay cooler than
terrestrial objects because water can absorb
a lot of energy with very little temperature
change.
 Water (continued)
 It takes about four times as much energy to

change the temperature of a shallow water
body by 1o C compared to that required to
change the temperature of rocks or soil by the
same amount.

 Moist soil is generally cooler than dry soil
due to evaporative cooling and the large
thermal capacity of the water in the soil.
 Vegetation is cooler than dry soil during the
day due to transpiration; it’s warmer than dry
soil at night because there is no transpiration
and the high thermal capacity of the in vivo
moisture maintains the absorbed heat of the
day.

 Thermal images containing clouds record the
radiant temperature of their constituents: water
droplets or ice particles. In most cases, due to
their altitude in the atmosphere, clouds exhibit
a cold to very cold signature (usually dark gray
to black).
 Smoke plumes are usually invisible on thermal
imagery. Hence, the thermal signatures of the
surface features beneath the smoke plumes are
recorded. This makes TIR imagery, particularly real-
time data, very useful for wild fire control work.
Night Day

Landsat 4 Band 6 21:32 August 22, 1982
Lake Ontario
Lake Erie

This ASTER image displays
thermal infrared bands 13,
12 and 10 as RGB.
band10 8.125 - 8.475 µm
band12 8.925 - 9.275 µm
band13 10.25 - 10.95 µm
In this FCC, variations in
quartz content appear as
more or less red; carbonate
rocks are green, and mafic
volcanic rocks are purple.

Wildland Fires in Yellowstone (summer of 1988)
321 754
Landsat TM images
band 7 (SWIR) band 6 (TIR)
Why the bright spots in band 7? Forest fires ~ 1200 -1300 K;

By Wien’s Law, radiant energy peaks at ~ 2.3 µm

Example from Jensen 2006

Remote Sensing of the Environment









 AVHRR SST Data for the Great Lakes



http://www.coastwatch.msu.edu/

To review:
What are some of the things you must consider when
thinking about TIR remote sensing?
• The color of the object (dark v. light)
• Object’s chemical composition
• Density, heat capacity, thermal inertia and conductivity
• Wavelength of TIR sensor(s)
• Atmospheric interference
• Others?

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Thermal Remote Sensing

Technically, TIR radiation is anything between 3500

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Torgersen et al 2001 (on D2L)

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Kelvin = Celsius + 273.15

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

λ (max) = wavelength (µm) of maximum spectral exitance

Wien's displacement constant = 2897.7721 ± 0.0026 µm K

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Exitance of an object at λ and Tkelvin

ε ranges from 0 to 1.0

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

 As such, emissivity (ε) is typically given only for

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Kuenzer & Dech 2013

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

 Water has very low reflectance in the TIR (and other

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Based on Salisbury, J. W., D’Aria, D. M., and Wald, A. 1994.

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Note the y-axes!

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

PinePine Dry Grass

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Schedule to deploy on the ISS in 2018

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

 One minor TIR “window”

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

 It takes about four times as much energy to

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Why the bright spots in band 7? Forest fires ~ 1200 -1300 K;

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Example from Jensen 2006

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Example from Jensen 2006

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Example from Jensen 2006

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Example from Jensen 2006

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

Example from Jensen 2006

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012

GEO 424: Advanced Remote Sensing Revised March 2012