Introduction To Remote Sensing

Introduction to Remote Sensing
Dr. Nurul Hazrina Idris

nurulhazrina@utm.my
Block C04 room 311 - 01
Spatial data acquisition
• The need for spatial data:
• Agronomist
– forecasting the overall agricultural production of a large area
– Require data on area planted with diff crops
– Data on biomass production to estimate yield
• Urban Planner
– Needs to identify areas with illegal dwelling
– Future landuse plan
– The info should be in format that allows integration with socio-
economic info.
• Engineer
– Determine the suitable location for power plan, relay station for
telecommunication and etc.
– Optimal area → terrain, landuse and etc.
• Geologist
– Map of surface mineralogy, lineament and etc.
– Landslides potential areas
• Climatologist
– Understanding on the causes of El nino phenomenon which
requires: Sea Surface Temp. (SST), sea level, meteorological
parameters, etc.
• All these applications deal with spatial phenomena
• Additional element – spatio-temporal phenomena (time is also
an important dimension)
• How to acquire this info.? – interviews, land surveying, labs
measurements of samples, interpretation of satellite images,
measurements using in-situ sensors and etc.
• Spatial data acquisition methods – 1. Ground based and 2.
Remote Sensing methods
• Ground-based – field observation, taking in-situ
sample/measurements
• Remote Sensing methods – using remotely sensed data
acquired using sensors e.g. aerial cameras, laser scanner,
radiometer and etc.
• These sensors are attached on the remote platform (airborne,
spaceborne, or remote instruments (laser scanner etc.))
Satellite Image Point clouds from laser scanner
What is Remote Sensing?
• Remote Sensing – science of acquiring, processing and
interpreting remotely sensed energy / images that record the
interaction between EMR and matter
• Remote Sensing – is the science and art of obtaining
information about an object, area, or phenomenon through the
analysis of data acquired by using device that is not in
contact with the object, area, or phenomenon under
investigation
• Remote Sensing - the instrumentation, techniques and
methods to observe the Earth's surface at a distance and to
interpret the images or numerical values obtained in order to
acquire meaningful information of particular objects on Earth
• Common definition - data on characteristics of the Earth's
surface are acquired by a device (sensor) that is not in contact
with the objects being measured
• Not necessarily, stored as image data
• The characteristics measured by a sensor - the
electromagnetic energy reflected or emitted by the Earth's
surface
• Energy spectrum - visible, infrared, and radio waves.
• RS requires ground data – why?
– RS data can be interpreted without ground data, BUT the best
results are obtained by linking with ground data
Field data
Advantageous of RS
• RS provides synoptic (general), i.e. area covering data
– For example, SST can be obtained by interpolating in-situ
measurements by buoys. However the number and distribution of
data from bouys most likely inadequate to enable mapping of SST
– The distance between buoys – 2000 km (x-direction), 300km (y-
direction)
– Meteorological satellite – SST can be obtained up to 1km
• RS provides surface and some subsurface characteristics
• RS provides multipurpose data
• RS is cost effective
Electromagnetic energy and remote sensing
• RS relies on the measurement of electromagnetic (EM) energy

• Several sources of EM – sun (visible, UV), emitted by earth,
and provided by the sensor (active sensor)
Electromagnetic energy
• Electromagnetic (EM) energy can be modelled – 1) waves 2)
Energy bearing particles called photons
• Wave model – Propagation of EM energy in the form of sine
waves
• The waves are characterized by: 1) Electrical (E) and Magnetic
(M) fields – perpendicular to each other
• Vibrations of both fields – perpendicular to direction of travel
• Both fields propagate at speed of light 3 x 108 m/s
• Wavelength, λ - distance between successive wave crests
• Frequency v, is the synoptic passing a fixed point over specific
period of time
• Frequency - hertz (Hz) – one cycle per second
c is the speed of light (3.108 m/s), λ is the wavelength (m), v is

the frequency (cycles per second,Hz).
• λ C
Electromagnetic spectrum
Superposition principle
and wave analysis:
– The wave motion
produced in a region
where 2 separate
waves cross each
other – the amplitude
is the sum of the
amplitudes of the 2
separate waves
• Jean Baptiste Fourier (French mathematician) – mathematically
any complicated wave form could be constructed by the
superposition of an infinite of these sinusoidal waves as
components, if the waves had the proper amplitudes,
frequencies, and phases
• A set of sinusoidal waves that generate the complicated waves
are called the spectral component
• The component sinusoidal can be reconstructed back from the
complicated wave through the use of Fourier analysis
• Possible to predict the kind of wave which will result when an
incidence wave reflects or penetrated the matter (material) – if
we know the sinusoidal component waves (that compose the
incident wave) & how each component reflect and penetrate
separately
• Reflected or penetrating wave will be the superposition of
reflecting or penetrating component waves
• Spectral properties - the material properties that specify the
response of material to sinusoidal component waves at every
frequency or wavelength
• Spectrographic instrument – to measure amount of radiant flux
carried by each of the sinusoidal components of any wave forms
(complicated wave)
Electromagnetic energy: Polarization
• EMR consists: 1) electric force field 2) magnetic force field
• The direction of these force fields is important to determine the
response of matter intercepted with EMR
• Both fields are at the right angles to each other
• We only have to know the direction and magnitude one of these
fields (i.e. electric field) – we can determine the other
• Plane polarized – EMR that produces electric field in a fixed
direction
• If 2 EM waves having the same frequency and direction, but
different direction of polarization →superpose→the resultant EM
field equal to the vector sum of the two component electric fields
• The direction of polarization of each individual wave = the
direction in which the electric field is vibrating (lie along the y
axis)
• Because all directions of vibration from a wave source are
possible, the resultant electromagnetic wave is a superposition
of waves vibrating in many different directions - The result is an
unpolarized light beam The arrows show a few possible
directions of the electric
field vectors for the individual waves
making up the resultant beam
• The plane formed by E and the direction of propagation is called
the plane of polarization of the wave
• In this case, the plane of polarization is the xy plane
• A linearly polarized (or plane-polarized) beam can be obtained

from an unpolarized beam by removing all waves from the beam
except those whose electric field vectors oscillate in a single
plane
Polarized Light
The twist of the yellow

arrow plane keeps
changing randomly
Unpolarized Light
The electric force field in any

plane of light can be
separated into a vertical and
horizontal component
• Radiation from some sources (mostly in the optical region) does
not have any clearly defined polarization – the electric field is
assumed at randomly different directions as the waved is
received (known as randomly polarized)
• In another case – the electric field has some direction at every
moment – except when the field has zero magnitude
• Plane polarization:
– Horizontal polarization – polarization direction that is parallel to
plane surface (incident surface)
– Vertical polarization – the plane polarization which is at the right
angle to the horizontally polarized direction
• In the literature of optics – different reference plane is used
• Plane of incidence – the plane formed by the normal to the
surface and the direction of propagation of the incident wave
• Parallel polarization – polarization direction that is parallel to the
plane of incidence
• Perpendicular polarization –
polarization direction perpendicular
to the plane of incidence
Electromagnetic energy: Coherent and
incoherent radiation
• Coherent waves – if there is a regular, or systematic,
relationship between their amplitudes (a receiving detector will
indicate more power at some locations and less power at other
locations)
• Incoherent waves – their amplitudes are related in random
fashion (a receiving detector will always indicate an average
power)
Quantization of radiation
Electromagnetic energy: monochromatic
radiation
• Monochromatic refers to electromagnetic radiation of a single
frequency
• Microwave radar and lasers normally utilize monochromatic
waves
• The reflected waves from two distant objects close together are
highly coherent – so image produced by these objects either 1)
indicate no power received (dark) OR 2) four times the average
power of one object
• For this reason – we have speckled or grainy effect
• Some purposes - EM energy is modelled by the particle theory
Radiant energy described by

Maxwell
Q is the energy of a photon (J), h is Planck's constant (6.625 x

10-34 Js), v is the frequency (hertz)
• EM energy is composed of discrete units called “photons”
• The longer the wavelength – the lower the energy content
• Gamma rays (around 10-9 m) – most energetic – shorter λ
• Radio waves (> 1 m) - the least energetic
• In remote sensing - more difficult to measure the energy
emitted in longer wavelengths than in shorter wavelengths.
Source of EM energy: Thermal emission
• All matter with a temp above absolute zero (0 K) radiates EM

energy due to molecular agitation (the movement of the
molecule)
• The sun and the earth radiate energy in the form of wave
• Blackbody - Matter that is capable of absorbing and re-emitting
all EM energy it receives
• Blackbody – emissivity (ϵ) = absorptivity (α) = maximum value
(1.0)
• The amount of energy radiated by an object (not blackbodies)
depends on its absolute temp. and its emissivity – a function of
wavelength
Blackbodies
• Ideal thermal emitter – transform heat energy into radiant energy
with the max. rate permitted by thermodynamic laws
• Must absorb and convert all incident radiant energy into heat
energy regardless of the spectral band
• Incident radiant energy → abs by blackbodies → trans. to heat
energy → trans. to radiant energy
• Spectral exitance - power per unit area per unit wavelength
• Planck’s formula: 1
M   c1 exp  c2 T   1
5
c1 = 3.74 x 10-16, c2 = 1.44 x 10-2, λ= wavelength (meters), T =

absolute temp in degrees Kelvin.
• Spectral exitance of blackbodies at a given Temp – not the same
at all λ
Blackbodies
• Wavelength in between – spectral exitance reaches a max value
depending on temp. The wavelength is (Wien displacement law):
m  C T
C – 2.898 x 10-3
• Spectral exitance of blackbodies of all wavelength (Stefan–
Boltzmann law)
M blackbody at T    T 4
Spectral radiant exitance of blackbodies
Very long and very short

wavelength – spectral
exitance is low !!!!
Spectral emissivity, ϵ (λ)
• Any body of material – at a specific temp emits radiation with its
own characteristics (unique)
• This is the capability to emit radiation due to thermal→energy
conversion
• ϵ (λ) – ratio of spectral exitance of material to the spectral
exitance of blackbody at the same temp
ϵ (λ) = M λ (material, °K) / M λ (blackbody, °K)
• ϵ (λ) – is nearly independent of temp. for most common
materials and for temp. of terrestrial environment
• For the condition where ϵ (λ) does not change significantly with
temp - we can calculate the spectral exitance of any material
if we know: 1) emissivity of that object, 2) Spectral exitance of
blackbodies (refer to the previous graph)
Interaction mechanism
Interaction mechanism
• EMR traveling from its initial source to the remote sensor will
undergo 1) absorption, 2) re-rediation, 3) reflection, 4)
scattering, 5) polarization, and 6) spectrum re-distribution
• Changes of EMR from source to sensor depend on interaction
with the material
• These changes – supply info to interpreter on the matter with
which the EMR interacts
• It gives info about – temperature, texture, moisture, and
electrical properties
Interaction mechanism:
Energy interaction in the atmosphere
• Three fundamental interaction in the atmosphere –
absorption, transmission, and scattering.
• Abs and transmission:
– EMR is partly absorbed by various molecules
– Most efficient absorbers – Ozone (O3), water vapour (H2O) and
carbon dioxide (CO2)
• About half of the spectrum between 0-22m – not useful for RS
of earth surface – can’t penetrate atmosphere
• Region outside the main absorption bands is called
“Atmospheric Transmission Windows”:
– A window in the visible and reflected infrared (0.4-2 m). Window
for optical RS operates
– Three windows in the thermal infrared; two narrow windows, 3
and 5 m, one broad window, 8-14 m
• Atmospheric moisture – strong abs for EMR at longer
wavelengths
• Hardly any transmission between 22 m – 1mm.
• > 1mm more transparent – microwave region
EM spectrum of the sun with and without
the influence of atmosphere
Radiation
produced
by the sun
Radiation
observed on
the earth
surface
• Atmospheric scattering – particle or gaseous molecules present
in the atmosphere re-directs EM waves from their original
path
• Amount of scattering depends on – 1) wavelength, 2) amount
of particle and gases, 3) distance the radiation travels through
the atmosphere
• Visible wavelengths - 100% (in case of cloud cover) to 5% (in
case of a clear atmosphere) of the energy received by the
sensor is directly contributed by the atmosphere
• Three types of scattering: Rayleigh scattering, Mie Scattering
and Non-selective Scattering.
• Rayleigh scattering
– Electromagnetic radiation interacts with particles that are smaller
than the wavelength
– Examples: tiny specks of dust, and nitrogen (N02) and oxygen (02)
molecules
– Effect of Rayleigh scattering
1 Always occur at
 4 short wavelength
– Shorter wavelengths are scattered more than longer wavelengths

– In the absence of particles and scattering, the sky would appear
black
– Daytime - the Sun rays travel the shortest distance through the
atmosphere, Rayleigh scattering causes a clear sky to be observed as
blue (scattering in blue wavelength)
– At sunrise and sunset - sun rays travel a longer distance - All the
shorter wavelengths are scattered after some distance - only the
longer wavelengths reach the Earth's surface - the sky appears
orange or red
– Rayleigh scattering - most important type of scattering - distortion of
spectral characteristics of the reflected light vs measurements taken
on the ground - shorter wavelengths are overestimated
• Mie scattering
– the wavelength of the incoming radiation is similar in size to the
atmospheric particles
– Aerosols: a mixture of gases, water vapour and dust
– Generally restricted to the lower atmosphere where larger
particles are more abundant, and dominates under overcast
cloud conditions
– Mie scattering influences the entire spectral region from the
near-ultraviolet up to and including the near-infrared
– Greater effect on the larger wavelengths than the Rayleigh
scattering
• Non-selective scattering
– The particle size is much larger than the radiation wavelength
– Particles responsible - water droplets and larger dust particles
– Independent of wavelength,
with all wavelengths scattered
about equally
– Prominent example - the effect of
clouds (clouds consist of water
droplets). All wavelengths are
scattered equally - a cloud
appears white
– Cloud – shadow effect
Energy interaction with earth’s surface
• Reflection occurs when radiation 'bounces' off the target and is
then redirected
Reflected
Energy Incidence Absorbed Transmitted
• Reflectance (%) = ER / EI Energy Energy Energy
• 2 types of reflection: Specular and diffuse reflection
• Specular reflection –
– Mirror-like reflection - typically occurs when a surface is smooth
and all (almost all) of the energy is directed away from the surface
in a single direction
– The sun is high in the sky
– Water/glass surface
– Very bight spot in the image
• Diffuse reflection:
– Surface is rough and the energy is reflected almost uniform in all
directions
• Neither perfectly specular nor diffuse reflectors – in between
• Reflection is sensitive/a function of: 1)wavelength,2)angle of
incidence,3)polarization,and 4)electrical properties of the
substance
• Intensity of a reflected EM wave from a particular substance –
can vary greatly throughout the EM spectrum
• EMR interactions are detected by remote sensor – designed to
selectively respond to different parts of the EM spectrum
• Energy reaching the earth’s surface – irradiance
• Energy reflected by the surface – radiance
• Irradiance and radiance – expressed in
• For each material - specific reflectance curve (show the fraction
of the incident radiation that is reflected as a function of
wavelength)
• Store collections of typical curves in spectral libraries
• Reflectance measurements - laboratory or in the field using
spectrometer
• Spectral curve of vegetation
– Reflectance characteristics of veg. – depends on the properties of
leaf (e.g. Chlorophyll, orientation and structure of leaf canopy)
– The proportion of the radiation reflected in the diff parts of the
spectrum – depends on leaf pigmentation, leaf thickness and
composition, amount of water in the leaf tissue
Photosynthesis
• Vegetation reflects relatively more green light
• Reflentance in near infrared – the highest – the amount depends
on the leaf development and cell structure
• Middle infrared - reflectance is determined by the free water in
the leaf tissue – more free water will result less reflectance
• Middle infrared – water absorption bands
• Dried leaf - the plant may change colour (for example, to yellow)
- no photosynthesis, reflectance in the red portion is higher –
water content is low, higher MIR reflectance - lower NIR
reflectance
• Optical remote sensing – vegetation health
• Bare soil
– Reflectance from soil is dependent on so many factors that it is
difficult to give one typical soil reflectance curve
– Main factors – soil color, moisture content, the presence of
carbonate and iron oxide content
• Water
– Compared to vegetation and soils, water has the lower reflectance
– Vegetation may reflect up to 50%, soils up to 30-40%, water at
most 10%
– Water reflects EM energy in the visible up to NIR
– Beyond 1.2 m all energy is absorbed
– The highest reflectance is given by turbid (silt loaded) water
– Water containing plants with a chlorophyll - peak at the green
wavelength
Basic concept: Digital Number (DN) and
Radiance
• DNs are the scaled integers from quantization- not a physical
quantity
• Most quantization systems in remote sensing are linear
• A larger Q leads to a higher radiometric precision

• DNs should be converted to physical quantities for estimating
land surface variables such as radiance measured in the
energy per area per solid angle
• Spectral radiance - the energy per area per solid angle per unit
wavelength (Wcm-2Sr-1μm-1)
Radiance
• Radiant energy (Q) – the energy carried by EMR - is a
measure of the capacity of the radiation
– to do physical work by moving something by a force
– to heat an object
– to change state of matter
• Radiant flux (Ф) – the time rate with which radiant energy
passes a spatial position (flow rate), J s-1 or Watt
• Radiant intensity (I) – Radiant flux per unit solid angle leaving
the source in that direction, W sr -1 I=Φ/(A/R 2 )
• Radiance (L) – Radiant flux per unit solid angle leaving an
extended source in a given direction per unit projected source
area in that direction, Wm-2sr -1 Φ
L= Acosθ
Ω
Radiance
• Lambertian source - the plane source where the radiance does
not change value as a function of angle of view
• Lambertian source example – a piece of white paper
illuminated by diffuse sky skylight – the visual brightness does
not change with angle of view
Radiance
• Average Radiant Flux Density (E) – when radiant flux
intercepted divided by the area of a plane, Wm-2
• Each small segment of the plane – intercepting a small part of
the flux
• The flux density of each segment = amount of flux intercepted of
the segment / area of the segment
• IF the segment is significantly small – the ratio can be taken
as the radiant flux density
• The radiant flux density for flux incident upon a surface is called
irradiance, Wm-2
Radiance
• Normally, DNs are linearly related to radiance, and most remote
sensing data providers produce the conversion coefficients for
the users
• These coefficients are usually included in the image data
header file (or metadata)
• Sensor calibration - procedure that determines these
conversion coefficients
• Sensor calibration – post & pre-flight
• Solid Angle – The cone angle subtended by a part of a
spherical surface of area A – with unit of the steradian (sr)
Basic concept: Solid angle
• The angle β between two radii of a circle of radius r is:
Basic concept : Solid angle
• Understanding the angular dependence is very important since
most sensors are targeting the Earth surface in a specific
direction
• A solid angle is often represented by the zenith and azimuth
angles in polar coordinates
• θrepresents the zenith angle (the angle measured from the
vertical or from the horizontal to a surface), Ф represents the
azimuth angle

Introduction To Remote Sensing

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Introduction To Remote Sensing

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Introduction to Remote Sensing

Dr. Nurul Hazrina Idris

• RS relies on the measurement of electromagnetic (EM) energy

c is the speed of light (3.108 m/s), λ is the wavelength (m), v is

• A linearly polarized (or plane-polarized) beam can be obtained

The twist of the yellow

The electric force field in any

Radiant energy described by

Q is the energy of a photon (J), h is Planck's constant (6.625 x

• All matter with a temp above absolute zero (0 K) radiates EM

c1 = 3.74 x 10-16, c2 = 1.44 x 10-2, λ= wavelength (meters), T =

Very long and very short

– Shorter wavelengths are scattered more than longer wavelengths

• A larger Q leads to a higher radiometric precision

You might also like