Article
Remote Sensing
Sven Huettermann, Simon Jones, Mariela Soto-Berelov, Samuel Hislop
Summary: Passive and active spaceborne remote sensing technologies are crucial for monitoring forests, and this study explores the relationship between spectral and structural change following forest fire disturbance. The study found strong fire responses in spectral indices, but a more pronounced decline in structural change metrics. Canopy height showed a less substantial decline. Fire severity and forest type were found to impact the fire response of the metrics. The study demonstrates the potential of integrating GEDI observations into spectral forest change monitoring.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Qunming Wang, Xinyu Ding, Xiaohua Tong, Peter M. Atkinson
Summary: The study introduces a spatio-temporal spectral unmixing (STSU) approach, which extends spectral unmixing into the spatio-temporal domain to obtain more reliable land cover information. This method does not require pure endmember extraction and directly uses extracted mixed training samples to construct a learning model, making it suitable for dynamic monitoring of land cover changes.
REMOTE SENSING OF ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Usman Rauf, Waqar S. Qureshi, Hamid Jabbar, Ayesha Zeb, Alina Mirza, Eisa Alanazi, Umar S. Khan, Nasir Rashid
Summary: In the agriculture sector of Pakistan, a new framework utilizing data from the Sentinal-2 satellite is proposed for accurate mapping and classification of two major rice varieties. The approach collected data from 12 rice fields at 16 time instances and achieved a high overall accuracy.
COMPUTERS AND ELECTRONICS IN AGRICULTURE
(2022)
Article
Remote Sensing
Levi Keay, Christopher Mulverhill, Nicholas C. C. Coops, Grant McCartney
Summary: The advent of CubeSat constellations has revolutionized the ability to observe Earth systems through time. This study developed and implemented a method for the spatial and temporal detection of forest harvest operations using images from the PlanetScope constellation. Results indicate that forest harvesting can be detected with relative accuracy, providing previously unavailable levels of spatial and temporal detail for forest stakeholders.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF REMOTE SENSING
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Samuel Shumack, Adrian Fisher, Paul P. Hesse
Summary: Medium resolution satellite-derived fractional cover estimates provide a powerful means to study arid ecosystem dynamics. This study in Australia's vegetated dunefields observed vegetation growth response to rainfall 'pulses', multiple time scales of antecedent climatic influence, dune susceptibility to wind-blown sand drift, and implications of image resolution choice. The new AZN model yielded favorable results and highlighted the importance of Landsat resolutions or better for estimating cover in dune crest regions.
REMOTE SENSING OF ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Alba Viana-Soto, Akpona Okujeni, Dirk Pflugmacher, Mariano Garcia, Inmaculada Aguado, Patrick Hostert
Summary: Mediterranean forests are prone to fires, which can affect their recovery and composition. This study analyzed post-fire vegetation recovery using fractional time series, revealing spatial and temporal patterns of different vegetation types and shifts in composition using a Normalized Difference Tree-Shrub Fraction index.
REMOTE SENSING OF ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yanyu Wang, Ziqiang Ma, Yuhong He, Wu Yu, Jinfeng Chang, Dailiang Peng, Xiaoxiao Min, Hancheng Guo, Yi Xiao, Lingfang Gao, Zhou Shi
Summary: This study characterized the spatiotemporal pattern and variation of vegetation disturbances on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) over the past decades, and identified the disturbance agents. The results showed that approximately 29.34% of the TP's area (75.71 M ha) experienced at least one disturbance, with 8.44 M ha area being subject to large-scale disturbances. The spatial distribution of these disturbances varied over time, with even distribution before 2002 possibly due to overgrazing and unscientific livestock management, and concentration in the south of the Yarlung Tsangpo after 2002 mainly caused by anthropogenic activities.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yanfang Wang, Lu Tan, Guangyu Wang, Xinyu Sun, Yannan Xu
Summary: The spatial resolution of remote sensing images affects the accuracy and efficiency of extracting fractional vegetation cover. This study analyzes the variations of vegetation cover extracted from images with different spatial resolutions at a specific time and over a time series. The results show that different spatial resolutions exhibit a regular pattern of overestimation or underestimation at different vegetation levels.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Roxanne Lai, Takashi Oguchi, Chenxi Zhong
Summary: Quantifying vegetation responses after natural disasters helps to understand complex relationships between vegetation and surface processes, such as soil erosion. This study at Unzen volcano in Japan used Landsat time series data to analyze landscape-scale vegetation response rates and factors, finding that linear-log functions best model recovery rates and eruption disturbance type and elevation are key drivers of vegetation recovery.
Article
Remote Sensing
Vangelis Fotakidis, Irene Chrysafis, Giorgos Mallinis, Nikos Koutsias
Summary: This study evaluates the feasibility of using three spectral indices for continuous burned area monitoring and finds that using the differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) and Relativized Burn Ratio (RBR) is more efficient than using the Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR).
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
(2023)
Article
Remote Sensing
Xinyu Ding, Qunming Wang, Xiaohua Tong
Summary: In this study, a newly developed spatio-temporal spectral unmixing model is applied for estimating 500 m fractional vegetation cover (FVC), and the accuracy is improved by integrating 250 m features into the original 500 m data. Experimental results show that the proposed method significantly improves the accuracy of FVC mapping, and using training samples extracted at the prediction time for model training is more reliable.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Atupelye W. Komba, Teiji Watanabe, Masami Kaneko, Mohan Bahadur Chand
Summary: This study utilized satellite data to examine vegetation disturbance history in the Ruaha-Rungwa landscape of Tanzania, revealing that 36% of vegetation was significantly disturbed with varying trends, severity, and patterns depending on management approaches.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yuhao Pan, Yan Wang, Shijun Zheng, Alfredo R. Huete, Miaogen Shen, Xiaoyang Zhang, Jingfeng Huang, Guojin He, Le Yu, Xiyan Xu, Qiaoyun Xie, Dailiang Peng
Summary: This study investigated the effects of terrain and vegetation types on the spatiotemporal patterns of vegetation greening on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau using Landsat NDVI time-series and climate data. The findings revealed that temperature and precipitation had different impacts on vegetation greening at different elevations, woody plants exhibited a higher velocity of greenness change compared to herbaceous plants, and slope had a more significant influence on vegetation greening compared to aspect.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jinxiu Liu, Eduardo Eiji Maeda, Du Wang, Janne Heiskanen
Summary: This study compared eleven spectral indices for burned area detection in southern Burkina Faso, finding Burned Area Index (BAI) to be the most accurate. Fire-related indices outperformed vegetation indices, with Char Soil Index (CSI) being the least effective.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Gwen Joelle Miller, Iryna Dronova, Patricia Y. Oikawa, Sara Helen Knox, Lisamarie Windham-Myers, Julie Shahan, Ellen Stuart-Haentjens
Summary: This study utilized a modeling approach to estimate plant greenness in tidal wetlands within the San Francisco Bay Area, finding that the approach accurately estimated plant greenness but with larger errors in more dynamic restored wetlands, particularly at early post-restoration stages. The modeled EVI can be used as an input variable in greenhouse gas models for estimating carbon sequestration and gross primary production. Future research can further develop this strategy by assessing restoration and management effects on wetland phenological dynamics and incorporating the entire Sentinel-2 time series within Google Earth Engine.
Article
Computer Science, Information Systems
Davit Marikyan, Savvas Papagiannidis, Eleftherios Alamanos
Summary: This study addresses the outcomes of technology use when it falls short of expectations and the coping mechanisms users may use in such circumstances. By adopting Cognitive Dissonance Theory, the study explores how negative disconfirmation of expectations can result in positive outcomes and how negative emotions impact the selection of dissonance reduction mechanisms. The study finds that post-disconfirmation dissonance leads to feelings of anger, guilt, and regret, which correlate with dissonance reduction mechanisms, ultimately affecting satisfaction and well-being.
INFORMATION SYSTEMS FRONTIERS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Txomin Hermosilla, Michael A. Wulder, Joanne C. White, Nicholas C. Coops
Summary: Deriving land cover from remotely sensed data is essential for operational mapping and reporting programs, benefiting from free imagery access and improved technological capabilities. The accuracy of land cover maps depends on calibration data, classification models, and implementation methods.
REMOTE SENSING OF ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Paul W. Hacker, Nicholas C. Coops
Summary: Accurate and timely identification of invasive plant species is crucial for successful management practices. This study found that remotely sensed leaf functional traits can differentiate C. scoparius from other common plant species, providing new possibilities for addressing the issue of Scotch broom invasion.
Article
Ecology
Evan R. Muise, Nicholas C. Coops, Txomin Hermosilla, Stephen S. Ban
Summary: Protected areas are important for conserving biodiversity and ecosystem services, but current metrics for assessing their effectiveness and representation are inadequate. This study analyzed the protected area network in British Columbia, Canada using remote sensing data and freely available information, and found biases towards high-elevation and alpine areas. Analysis of forest structural attributes suggests establishing additional protected areas to ensure representation of different forest structure regimes across the province.
ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Remote Sensing
Martin Queinnec, Nicholas C. Coops, Joanne C. White, Verena C. Griess, Naomi B. Schwartz, Grant McCartney
Summary: In this study, dominant species groups in a large boreal forest were mapped by combining area-based and individual tree metrics derived from LiDAR data with multispectral information from Sentinel-2 imagery. The study found that variables such as reflectance in the red edge region, tree crown area and volume, and cumulative distribution of LiDAR returns in the canopy were important for discriminating between species groups.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF REMOTE SENSING
(2023)
Article
Remote Sensing
Levi Keay, Christopher Mulverhill, Nicholas C. C. Coops, Grant McCartney
Summary: The advent of CubeSat constellations has revolutionized the ability to observe Earth systems through time. This study developed and implemented a method for the spatial and temporal detection of forest harvest operations using images from the PlanetScope constellation. Results indicate that forest harvesting can be detected with relative accuracy, providing previously unavailable levels of spatial and temporal detail for forest stakeholders.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF REMOTE SENSING
(2023)
Article
Remote Sensing
Alexandre Morin-Bernard, Alexis Achim, Nicholas C. Coops
Summary: Non-stand-replacing disturbances play a significant role in northern hardwood forest dynamics, but are more difficult to characterize using satellite imagery than stand-replacing events. This study proposes a hurdle approach that attributes disturbance causal agents to specific sample plots, achieving an overall accuracy of 82.9%. Disturbance-specific models were then developed to assess the severity of partial harvests and damage from ice storms, with r-squared values of 0.57 and 0.59, respectively. These models provide important information for future silvicultural planning by capturing within-stand variability in disturbance severity.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF REMOTE SENSING
(2023)
Review
Fisheries
Spencer Dakin Kuiper, Nicholas C. C. Coops, Scott G. G. Hinch, Joanne C. C. White
Summary: Remote sensing technology has the potential to revolutionize freshwater fish habitat monitoring by providing information across large geographic areas, but the overwhelming number of platforms, sensors, and software available may hinder its widespread use. This review examines the fundamental characteristics of remote sensing technologies used for freshwater habitat characterization, reviews studies that have utilized these technologies, and identifies key habitat features, fish species, and regions that have been examined. The review also highlights the strengths and weaknesses of different remote sensing technologies, suggests future research directions, and provides important considerations for those interested in utilizing these technologies for freshwater fish habitat characterization.
FISH AND FISHERIES
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Joanne C. White, Txomin Hermosilla, Michael A. Wulder
Summary: Wildfire is a significant factor in driving forest dynamics in boreal forests, with increasing wildfire activity observed in the past 50 years. Post-fire recovery plays a vital role in carbon balance and the provision of ecosystem goods and services in boreal forests. Monitoring recovery is challenging due to the large and inaccessible impacted areas, as well as the variability in post-fire conditions. Remote sensing data can provide assessments of pre- and post-fire conditions and spectral recovery baselines, but the connection between spectral measures and on-ground forest recovery needs to be established.
FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Forestry
A. R. Wotherspoon, A. Achim, N. C. Coops
Summary: This study examines the future climate trends in eight ecozones in Canada that contain managed forests. The projections suggest a warming trend and an overall increase in precipitation. The study highlights the potential impacts on dominant species and wood volume for Canada's forestry industry.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF FOREST RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Jose Riofrio, Joanne C. White, Piotr Tompalski, Nicholas C. Coops, Michael A. Wulder
Summary: By developing age-independent height growth models, using multi-temporal airborne laser scanning (ALS) data, a comprehensive indicator of site quality for complex and irregular stand structures is provided. This approach leverages the accurate, spatially detailed characterization of canopy heights afforded by ALS data and is independent of stand age, increasing the possible geographic extent of height growth estimates.
FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Saverio Francini, Txomin Hermosilla, Nicholas C. Coops, Michael A. Wulder, Joanne C. White, Gherardo Chirici
Summary: Remote sensing is a major source of information for monitoring forest dynamics, but accurate surface reflectance data is often difficult to obtain. Pixel-based composites are used to generate complete coverage of the area of interest from multi-temporal images, but a comprehensive methodology for assessing the quality of these composites is currently lacking. In this study, a pixel-based composite assessment methodology based on five criteria was introduced and tested on Landsat images over Europe. The results showed that the assessment approach was effective for evaluating the quality of pixel-based composites and could be applied in various applications.
ISPRS JOURNAL OF PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND REMOTE SENSING
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Margaret E. Andrew, Douglas K. Bolton, Gregory J. M. Rickbeil, Nicholas C. Coops
Summary: This study evaluates the effects of niche-based mechanisms, including environmental filtering, niche availability, and niche packing, on biodiversity patterns. The results show that the importance of these mechanisms varies with scale, position on environmental gradients, and taxonomic group.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
