Preface ........................................................ xv
Acronyms List ............................................... xviii
Acknowledgments .............................................. xxii
Abbreviations ............................................... xxiii
Part I Getting started: remote sensing fundamentals
1 Introduction: Why ecologists and conservation biologists
use remote sensing ........................................... 3
1.1 Our aims and objectives ................................. 3
1.2 Why remote sensing tools are important .................. 4
1.2.1 Observation ...................................... 4
1.2.2 Analysis and measurement ......................... 6
1.2.3 Mapping .......................................... 8
1.2.1 Monitoring over time and space ................... 8
1.2.2 Decision support ................................. 9
1.3 Organization of the book ................................ 9
1.3.1 Getting started: remote sensing fundamentals ..... 9
1.3.2 Ecological systems and processes ................ 10
1.3.2 Putting it into practice: conservation
applications .................................... 12
1.3.3 Appendices ...................................... 14
1.4 Remote sensing: a technology in development ............ 14
2 When to use remote sensing .................................. 15
2.1 Physical and practical limitations of remotely sensed
imagery ................................................ 15
2.7.1 Resolution ...................................... 16
2.7.2 Working at different scales: practical and
conceptual limitations .......................... 23
2.7.3 Using remote sensing to study social
phenomena ....................................... 25
2.2 Accuracy ............................................... 25
2.2.1 Types of error .................................. 25
2.2.2 Defining acceptable accuracy .................... 27
2.2.3 Measuring and reporting accuracy ................ 28
2.2.4 Understanding accuracy statistics ............... 30
2.2.5 Trends in accuracy assessment ................... 31
2.3 Assessing in-house capabilities (institutional
limitations) ........................................... 32
2.3.1 Doing work in-house or contracting out .......... 33
2.3.2 Training ........................................ 33
2.3.3 Finding a good remote sensing consultant ........ 35
2.4 Summary ................................................ 35
3 Working with images ......................................... 37
3.1 Choosing the right type of imagery ..................... 39
3.1.1 Multispectral imaging ........................... 39
3.7.1 Spatial resolution and scale .................... 40
3.7.2 Temporal options: seasonality and frequency of
acquisitions .................................... 46
3.7.3 Requesting imagery .............................. 46
3.7.4 Making the decision ............................. 47
3.2 Software options ....................................... 48
3.2.1 Graphics software ................................ 48
3.2.2 GIS software .................................... 48
3.2.3 Specialized remote sensing software ............. 49
3.2.4 Mathematical and visualization software ......... 49
3.2.5 Deciding which software to use .................. 49
3.3 Visualizing the data ................................... 50
3.3.1 Combining bands to make a color composite ........ 50
3.3.2 Image enhancements .............................. 50
3.3.3 Image sharpening with a panchromatic band ....... 53
3.3.4 Three-dimensional viewing ....................... 57
3.4 Additional processing .................................. 59
3.4.1 Radiometric processing ........................... 59
3.4.2 Reflectance: the holy grail of remote sensing ... 60
3.4.3 Geometric processing ............................ 62
3.5 Image interpretation and classification ................ 64
3.5.1 Visual interpretation ............................ 65
3.5.2 Image classification ............................ 67
3.5.3 Accuracy assessment ............................. 78
3.6 Summary ................................................ 78
Part II Ecological systems and processes
4 Measuring and monitoring land cover, land use, and
vegetation characteristics .................................. 81
4.1 Land cover classification .............................. 81
4.1.1 Land cover versus land use ...................... 81
4.1.2 Options for output products ..................... 82
4.1.3 Comparing land cover maps with image
photoproducts ................................... 83
4.1.4 Getting started ................................. 84
4.1.5 Requirements for creating a land cover
classification map .............................. 84
4.1.6 Define the study area ........................... 85
4.1.7 Defining a classification scheme ................ 86
4.1.8 Selecting imagery ............................... 88
4.1.9 Image preprocessing ............................. 88
4.1.10 Ancillary data .................................. 90
4.1.11 Classification methods .......................... 90
4.1.12 Field validation ................................ 91
4.1.13 Accuracy assessment ............................. 91
4.1.14 Using the completed map ......................... 91
4.2 Monitoring land cover change ........................... 92
4.2.1 Reasons for mapping land cover change ........... 92
4.2.2 Monitoring changes in forest cover .............. 93
4.2.3 Visual methods for monitoring land cover
change .......................................... 93
4.2.4 Selecting a change detection method ............. 95
4.2.5 Dealing with different data sources ............ 101
4.2.6 Data normalization ............................. 103
4.2.7 Validating change detection results ............ 104
4.2.8 Planning a land cover change project ........... 104
4.3 Vegetation characteristics ............................ 107
4.3.1 Using vegetation indices ....................... 108
4.3.2 Principle components analysis (PCA) ............ 111
4.3.3 Other MODIS vegetation data products ........... 112
4.3.4 Using active sensors for vegetation mapping .... 112
4.4 Summary ............................................... 119
5 Terrain and soils ........................................... 120
5.1 Elevation .............................................. 120
5.1.1 What is elevation? ............................. 121
5.1.2 Representing three-dimensional surfaces ........ 123
5.1.3 Acquiring elevation data ....................... 126
5.1.4 DEM preprocessing .............................. 128
5.1.5 Products derived from DEMs ..................... 130
5.1.6 Using DEMs to improve mapping accuracy ......... 131
5.1.7 Three-dimensional analysis and visualization ... 135
5.2 Geology and soils ..................................... 136
5.2.1 Geology ........................................ 137
5.2.2 Soils .......................................... 137
5.3 Summary ............................................... 138
6 Marine and coastal environments ............................ 140
6.1 Separating the surface, water column, and bottom ...... 141
6.1.1 Water types .................................... 143
6.1.2 Water column correction ........................ 147
6.1.3 Bathymetry ..................................... 150
6.1.4 Top-down versus bottom-up approaches ........... 152
6.2 Water properties ...................................... 154
6.2.1 Chlorophyll ..................................... 156
6.2.2 Primary productivity ........................... 157
6.2.3 Harmful algal blooms ........................... 158
6.2.4 Sea surface temperature (SST) .................. 160
6.2.5 Predicting coral bleaching ..................... 161
6.2.6 Salinity ....................................... 162
6.2.7 Ocean circulation .............................. 164
6.3 Shallow benthic environments .......................... 165
6.3.1 Coral reefs ..................................... 165
6.3.2 Seagrasses and kelp ............................. 170
6.4 Summary ............................................... 173
7 Wetlands—estuaries, inland wetlands, and freshwater
lakes ...................................................... 174
7.1 Mangroves ............................................. 179
7.2 Salt and freshwater marshes ........................... 181
7.2.1 Lidar mapping of wetland elevation ............. 182
7.2.2 Lidar mapping of wetland vegetation ............ 184
7.2.3 Spectral characteristics used in mapping of
marshes ........................................ 185
7.2.4 Combining lidar and multispectral data ......... 188
7.2.5 Radar mapping of wetlands ...................... 189
7.2.6 Using radar to map hurricane-related
flooding ....................................... 190
7.3 Shoreline mapping of lakes and rivers ................. 192
7.4 Water quality mapping and monitoring .................. 192
7.4.1 Hyperspectral remote sensing of water
quality ........................................ 192
7.4.2 Thermal mapping ................................. 193
7.5 Summary ............................................... 194
8 Atmosphere and climate ..................................... 195
8.1 Climate and the physical environment .................. 196
8.2 Clouds ................................................ 200
8.2.1 Clouds and climate ............................. 201
8.2.2 How cloud remote sensing works ................. 201
8.3 Aerosols .............................................. 204
8.3.1 Aerosols and climate ............................ 205
8.3.2 Aerosols and biological productivity ........... 209
8.3.3 How aerosol remote sensing works ............... 209
8.4 Precipitation ......................................... 210
8.4.1 The basics of precipitation .................... 211
8.4.2 Ground-based radar ............................. 211
8.4.3 How remote sensing of precipitation works ...... 212
8.4.4 A caveat regarding precipitation products ...... 216
8.4.5 Global precipitation climatology product ....... 218
8.4.6 Feedbacks between vegetation and
precipitation .................................. 219
8.5 Winds ................................................. 221
8.5.1 The basics of global winds ..................... 224
8.5.2 How remote sensing of wind works ............... 226
8.5.3 Winds and ocean productivity ................... 228
8.6 Temperature and the radiation budget .................. 230
8.6.1 Temperature and vegetation ..................... 230
8.6.2 Temperature and species ........................ 231
8.6.3 The basics of Earth's radiation budget and
temperature .................................... 232
8.6.4 Remote sensing of Earth's radiation budget
and temperature ................................ 233
8.6.5 Long-term temperature data sets ................ 237
8.7 Global climate modeling applications to ecology and
conservation .......................................... 238
8.8 Summary and a potential way forward through
ecological forecasting ................................ 241
9 Disturbances: fires and floods ............................. 242
9.1 Fires and logging in the humid tropics ................ 242
9.7.1 Tropical fires and biodiversity ................ 246
9.7.2 Tropical fires and the atmosphere .............. 246
9.2 Remote sensing of fire and its aftermath .............. 247
9.2.1 Pre fire assessment ............................ 247
9.2.2 Fire detection and monitoring .................. 247
9.2.3 Postfire assessment ............................ 252
9.2.4 Some satellite fire products ................... 253
9.3 Remote sensing of floods .............................. 254
9.3.1 Passive and active remote sensing of floods ..... 255
9.4 Other disturbance mechanisms .......................... 258
9.4.1 Volcanoes ....................................... 258
9.4.2 Dams ............................................ 260
9.5 Summary ............................................... 260
Part III Putting remote sensing into practice: conservation
and ecology applications
10 Landscape fragmentation .................................... 263
10.1 Fragmentation basics .................................. 264
10.2 Fragmentation metrics ................................. 267
10.3 Issues in processing fragmentation data ............... 270
10.4 Composition metrics ................................... 274
10.5 Configuration, edge, and connectivity metrics ......... 276
10.6 Fractal dimensions .................................... 279
10.7 Connectivity metrics .................................. 280
10.8 Route network metrics ................................. 281
10.9 Fragmentation analyses at different scales using
remote sensing ........................................ 283
10.10 Summary .............................................. 284
11 Human interfaces and urban change .......................... 285
11.1 Importance of remotely sensed data for studying
urban interfaces ...................................... 286
11.2 Data sources for urban classification ................. 287
11.3 Data analysis techniques .............................. 289
11.3.1 Image rectification ............................ 289
11.3.2 Preprocessing .................................. 292
11.3.3 Change detection algorithms .................... 293
11.4 Accuracy measurements for urban change ................ 296
11.5 Texture analysis ...................................... 298
11.6 Complex urban land cover analyses ..................... 301
11.7 Urban heat islands .................................... 305
11.8 Summary ............................................... 306
12 Protected area design and monitoring ....................... 307
12.1 Planning for protected areas .......................... 309
12.1.1 Designing individual protected areas ........... 309
12.1.2 Designing networks of protected areas .......... 310
12.2 Managing and monitoring protected areas ............... 314
12.3 Integrating remotely sensed data and social and
economic considerations into protected area planning
and monitoring ........................................ 316
12.4 Global-scale monitoring and resources for remotely
sensed data and protected areas ....................... 317
12.5 Summary and cautions about the use of remotely
sensed data for protected area design and
monitoring ............................................ 319
13 Integrating field data ..................................... 321
13.1 Integrating field data and remotely sensed data ....... 322
13.1.1 Remote sensing versus field methods ............ 322
13.1.2 Handheld sensors: an intersection of remote
sensing and field methods ...................... 323
13.1.3 Cround-level field photography ................. 325
13.1.4 Telemetry ...................................... 328
13.2 Summary ............................................... 332
14 Linking remote sensing with modeling ....................... 333
14.1 What are models? ...................................... 335
14.2 How do I start? Steps to developing models ............ 336
14.2.1 Establish problem statement .................... 336
14.2.2 Define your model system's boundaries .......... 337
14.2.3 Define your modeling approach .................. 338
14.2.4 Identify model variables ....................... 339
14.2.5 Test and validate your model ................... 342
14.3 What remote sensing products are commonly used in
modeling? ............................................. 343
14.3.1 Climate ........................................ 344
14.3.2 Terrain and soils .............................. 345
14.3.3 Land cover ..................................... 346
14.3.4 Land use ....................................... 347
14.3.5 Landscape pattern descriptors .................. 347
14.4 Summary ............................................... 349
15 Global conservation ........................................ 350
15.1 Remote sensing and the road to a global ecology ....... 350
15.2 Remote sensing and global conservation ................ 357
15.2.1 Global priority setting for conservation ....... 358
15.2.2 Monitoring changes on earth's surface .......... 360
15.2.3 Ecological forecasting ......................... 361
15.3 A look ahead .......................................... 361
15.4 Summary ............................................... 363
Part IV Appendices
Appendix 1 The electromagnetic spectrum ....................... 367
Appendix 2 Image-processing software .......................... 370
A2.1 Graphics software ..................................... 370
A2.1.1 Proprietary .................................... 370
A2.1.2 Open source .................................... 371
A2.2 Geographic information system (CIS) software .......... 371
A2.2.1 Proprietary .................................... 371
A2.2.2 Open source .................................... 371
A2.3 Specialized remote sensing software ................... 372
A2.3.1 Proprietary .................................... 372
A2.3.2 Open source .................................... 373
A2.4 Numerical analysis software ........................... 373
A2.4.1 Proprietary .................................... 373
A2.4.2 Open source .................................... 374
Appendix 3 Open source software ............................... 375
A3.1 What is open source software? ......................... 375
A3.2 Where does open source software fit in? ............... 376
A3.3 So, how can you help? ................................. 376
A3.4 What is out there and where can I get it? ............. 376
Appendix 4 Satellites and sensors ............................. 377
A4 1 Optical ............................................... 377
A4.2 Radar ................................................. 381
A4.3 Free remotely sensed data archives .................... 382
Appendix 5 Visual interpretation .............................. 384
A5.1 What do you need to interpret images? ................. 384
A5.2 Different levels of interpretation .................... 385
A5.3 The elements of image interpretation .................. 387
A5.3.1 Color and tone ................................. 387
A5.3.2 Size and shape ................................. 389
A5.3.3 Texture and pattern ............................ 389
A5.3.4 Shadows ........................................ 391
A5.3.5 Relative and absolute location ................. 392
AS.3.6 Time ........................................... 393
A5.4 Practice, practice, practice .......................... 395
Appendix 6 Systems for observing climate and atmospheric
phenomena .................................................. 396
A6.1 Clouds ................................................ 396
A6.2 Aerosols .............................................. 404
A6.3 Precipitation ......................................... 414
A6.4 Temperature ........................................... 415
References .................................................... 416
Index ......................................................... 451
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