Remote Sensing . . .

How You Can Use It On Your Farm

The Electromagnetic Spectrum 
Electromagnetic Energy and Plants 
How Does Remote Sensing Work? 
Remote Sensing: The Complete Process
References

When farmers or ranchers observe their fields or pastures to assess their

condition without physically touching them, it is a form of remote sensing.
Observing the colors of leaves or the overall appearances of plants can
determine the plant's condition. Remotely sensed images taken from satellites
and aircraft provide a means to assess field conditions without physically
touching them from a point of view high above the field.

Most remote sensors see the same visible wavelengths of light that are seen
by the human eye, although in most cases remote sensors can also detect
energy from wavelengths that are undetectable to the human eye. The remote
view of the sensor and the ability to store, analyze, and display the sensed
data on field maps are what make remote sensing a potentially important tool
for agricultural producers. Agricultural remote sensing is not new and dates
back to the 1950s, but recent technological advances have made the benefits
of remote sensing accessible to most agricultural producers.

Remote Sensing . . . How You Can Use It On Your

Farm
Remotely sensed images can be used to identify nutrient deficiencies,
diseases, water deficiency or surplus, weed infestations, insect damage, hail
damage, wind damage, herbicide damage, and plant populations.

Information from remote sensing can be used as base maps in variable rate
applications of fertilizers and pesticides. Information from remotely sensed
images allows farmers to treat only affected areas of a field. Problems within a
field may be identified remotely before they can be visually identified.

Ranchers use remote sensing to identify prime grazing areas, overgrazed

areas or areas of weed infestations. Lending institutions use remote sensing
data to evaluate the relative values of land by comparing archived images with
those of surrounding fields.

The Electromagnetic Spectrum

The basic principles of remote sensing with satellites and aircraft are similar to
visual observations. Energy in the form of light waves travels from the sun to
Earth. Light waves travel similarly to waves traveling across a lake. The
distance from the peak of one wave to the peak of the next wave is the
wavelength. Energy from sunlight is called the electromagnetic spectrum.

The wavelengths used in most agricultural remote sensing applications cover

only a small region of the electromagnetic spectrum. Wavelengths are
measured in micrometers (µm) or nanometers (nm). One um is about .
00003937 inch and 1 µm equals 1,000 nm. The visible region of the
electromagnetic spectrum is from about 400 nm to about 700 nm. The green
color associated with plant vigor has a wavelength that centers near 500 nm
(Figure 1).

Figure 1. The visible region of the spectrum ranges from about 0.4 µm to
0.7 µm (Kyllo, 2004). 
(Click here for an 18KB color illustration.)

Wavelengths longer than those in the visible region and up to about 25 µm are
in the infrared region. The infrared region nearest to that of the visible region
is the near infrared (NIR) region. Both the visible and infrared regions are
used in agricultural remote sensing.

Electromagnetic Energy and Plants

When electromagnetic energy from the sun strikes plants, three things can
happen. Depending upon the wavelength of the energy and characteristics of
individual plants, the energy will be reflected, absorbed, or transmitted.
Reflected energy bounces off leaves and is readily identified by human eyes
as the green color of plants. A plant looks green because the chlorophyll in
the leaves absorbs much of the energy in the visible wavelengths and the
green color is reflected. Sunlight that is not reflected or absorbed is
transmitted through the leaves to the ground.
Interactions between reflected, absorbed, and transmitted energy can be
detected by remote sensing. The differences in leaf colors, textures, shapes
or even how the leaves are attached to plants, determine how much energy
will be reflected, absorbed or transmitted. The relationship between reflected,
absorbed and transmitted energy is used to determine spectral signatures of
individual plants. Spectral signatures are unique to plant species.

Remote sensing is used to identify stressed areas in fields by first establishing

the spectral signatures of healthy plants. The spectral signatures of stressed
plants appear altered from those of healthy plants. Figure 3 compares the
spectral signatures of healthy and stressed sugarbeets.

Figure 2. Spectral signatures of crops and soil (Kyllo, 2003). (Click here

for a 19KB color graph.)

Figure 3. Spectral signatures of healthy and stressed sugarbeets (Kyllo,

2003). (Click here for an 11KB color graph.)

Stressed sugarbeets have a higher reflectance value in the visible region of

the spectrum from 400-700 nm. This pattern is reversed for stressed
sugarbeets in the nonvisible range from about 750-1200 nm. The visible
pattern is repeated in the higher reflectance range from about 1300-2400 nm.
Interpreting the reflectance values at various wavelengths of energy can be
used to assess crop health.

The comparison of the reflectance values at different wavelengths, called a

vegetative index, is commonly used to determine plant vigor. The most
common vegetative index is the normalized difference vegetative index
(NDVI). NDVI compares the reflectance values of the red and NIR regions of
the electromagnetic spectrum. The NDVI value of each area on an image
helps identify areas of varying levels of plant vigor within fields.

How Does Remote Sensing Work?

There are several types of remote sensing systems used in agriculture but the
most common is a passive system that senses the electromagnetic energy
reflected from plants. The sun is the most common source of energy for
passive systems. Passive system sensors can be mounted on satellites,
manned or unmanned aircraft, or directly on farm equipment.
There are several factors to consider when choosing a remote sensing system
for a particular application, including spatial resolution, spectral resolution,
radiometric resolution, and temporal resolution.

Spatial resolution refers to the size of the smallest object that can be

detected in an image. The basic unit in an image is called a pixel. One-meter
spatial resolution means each pixel image represents an area of one square
meter. The smaller an area represented by one pixel, the higher the resolution
of the image.

Spectral resolution refers to the number of bands and the wavelength width

of each band. A band is a narrow portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Shorter wavelength widths can be distinguished in higher spectral resolution
images. Multi-spectral imagery can measure several wavelength bands such
as visible green or NIR. Landsat, Quickbird and Spot satellites use multi-
spectral sensors. Hyperspectral imagery measures energy in narrower and
more numerous bands than multi-spectral imagery. The narrow bands of
hyperspectral imagery are more sensitive to variations in energy wavelengths
and therefore have a greater potential to detect crop stress than multi-spectral
imagery. Multi-spectral and hyperspectral imagery are used together to
provide a more complete picture of crop conditions.

Radiometric resolution refers to the sensitivity of a remote sensor to

variations in the reflectance levels. The higher the radiometric resolution of a
remote sensor, the more sensitive it is to detecting small differences in
reflectance values. Higher radiometric resolution allows a remote sensor to
provide a more precise picture of a specific portion of the electromagnetic
spectrum.

Temporal resolution refers to how often a remote sensing platform can

provide coverage of an area. Geo-stationary satellites can provide continuous
sensing while normal orbiting satellites can only provide data each time they
pass over an area. Remote sensing taken from cameras mounted on
airplanes is often used to provide data for applications requiring more frequent
sensing. Cloud cover can interfere with the data from a scheduled remotely
sensed data system. Remote sensors located in fields or attached to
agricultural equipment can provide the most frequent temporal resolution.

Remote Sensing: The Complete Process

Figure 4 illustrates a satellite remote sensing process as applied to
agricultural monitoring processes. The sun (A) emits electromagnetic energy
(B) to plants (C). A portion of the electromagnetic energy is transmitted
through the leaves. The sensor on the satellite detects the reflected energy
(D). The data is then transmitted to the ground station (E). The data is
analyzed (F) and displayed on field maps (G).

Figure 4.The remote sensing process. (Click here for a 17KB diagram.)

References
Adamchuk, V.I., Perk, R.L., & Schepers, J.S. (2003). Applications of Remote
Sensing in Site-Specific Management. University of Nebraska Cooperative
Extension Publication EC 03-702.

Bauer, M.E. (1985). Spectral inputs to crop identification and condition

assessment. Proceedings of the IEEE, 73, No. 6, 1985, 1081.

Hatfield, J.L. & Pinter, P.J.Jr. (1993). Remote sensing for crop

protection (Publication No. 0261-2194/93/06/0414-09). Ames, IA: USDA -
Agricultural Research Service.

Jackson, R.D., & Huete, A.R. (1991). Interpreting vegetative

indices. Preventative Veterinary Medicine, 11, 185-200.

Kyllo, K. P. (2003). NASA funded research on agricultural remote sensing,

Department of Space Studies, University of North Dakota.

Moran, M.S., Inoue, Y., & Barnes, E.M. (1997). Opportunities and limitations
for image-based remote sensing in precision crop management. Remote
Sensing of Environment, 61, 319-346.

National Academy of Sciences. (1997) Precision Agriculture in the 21st

Century.

For more information on this and other topics,

see: www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu
Applications of remote sensing data

 Conventional radar is mostly associated with aerial traffic control, early warning, and certain large
scale meteorological data. Doppler radar is used by local law enforcements’ monitoring of speed
limits and in enhanced meteorological collection such as wind speed and direction within weather
systems. Other types of active collection includes plasmas in the ionosphere). Interferometric
synthetic aperture radar is used to produce precise digital elevation models of large scale terrain
(See RADARSAT, TerraSAR-X, Magellan).
 Laser and radar altimeters on satellites have provided a wide range of data. By measuring the
bulges of water caused by gravity, they map features on the seafloor to a resolution of a mile or so.
By measuring the height and wave-length of ocean waves, the altimeters measure wind speeds and
direction, and surface ocean currents and directions.
 Light detection and ranging (LIDAR) is well known in examples of weapon ranging, laser
illuminated homing of projectiles. LIDAR is used to detect and measure the concentration of various
chemicals in the atmosphere, while airborne LIDAR can be used to measure heights of objects and
features on the ground more accurately than with radar technology. Vegetation remote sensing is a
principal application of LIDAR.
 Radiometers and photometers are the most common instrument in use, collecting reflected and
emitted radiation in a wide range of frequencies. The most common are visible and infrared sensors,
followed by microwave, gamma ray and rarely, ultraviolet. They may also be used to detect
the emission spectra of various chemicals, providing data on chemical concentrations in the
atmosphere.
 Stereographic pairs of aerial photographs have often been used to make topographic maps by
imagery and terrain analysts in trafficability and highway departments for potential routes.
 Simultaneous multi-spectral platforms such as Landsat have been in use since the 70’s. These
thematic mappers take images in multiple wavelengths of electro-magnetic radiation (multi-spectral)
and are usually found on Earth observation satellites, including (for example) the Landsat program or
the IKONOS satellite. Maps of land cover and land use from thematic mapping can be used to
prospect for minerals, detect or monitor land usage, deforestation, and examine the health of
indigenous plants and crops, including entire farming regions or forests.
 Within the scope of the combat against desertification, remote sensing allows to follow-up and
monitor risk areas in the long term, to determine desertification factors, to support decision-makers in
defining relevant measures of environmental management, and to assess their impacts.[2]
Remote Sensing and GIS Applications for Agriculture

Rajesh Solomon Paul

Project Lead (GIS)
RMSI Private Ltd.
A-7, Sector 16, NOIDA (U.P.) 
PIN- 201301, INDIA
[email protected] 

Dr. K.S. Siva Subramanian

Deputy General Manager (GIS)
RMSI Private Ltd.
A-7, Sector 16, NOIDA (U.P.) 
PIN- 201301, INDIA
[email protected] 

Abstract
In the early 1980’s, the Department of Space, India initiated the use of remote sensing for land,
wasteland, and hill area development. In the early 1990’s ITC, a private company extensively
used remote sensing for crop acreage estimation. Today remote sensing and GIS applications
are being widely used for various projects relating to natural resource management.

Remote Sensing and GIS applications for agriculture can be classified as:

 Creation of Agricultural Information System, by combining information derived from

source satellite images and data collected from other sources
 Agricultural Information based applications such as, insurance, commercial distribution
studies of seeds, pests and fertilizers
 Agricultural Livelihood or Commercial Enhancement Studies, such as, land
development, agricultural risk mitigation studies, watershed management etc

Through this paper the authors have tried to provide a multifarious example of the above
applications, while stressing the importance of remote sensing and GIS applications. Major
emphasis has been attributed to variety level classification of crops, crop yield estimation for
Insurance studies and agricultural risk mitigation studies. Utility of different satellites with
different resolution, starting from low resolution MODIS, AWiFS to high resolution LISS IV data
of IRS satellites have also been discussed in the paper.
Introduction
Efficiency in the agricultural sector can be augmented effectively by using Information
Technology tools such as remote sensing and GIS. The database for the agriculture sector can
ensure greater reliability of estimates and forecasting that will help in the process of planning
and policy making. Efforts to improve and harness latest remote sensing and information
technology techniques to capture, collate, add value and disseminate data into appropriate
destinations will be helpful for managing risk and in accelerating the growth process.

Areas of emphasis in agriculture segment

India has an agrarian economy with around 200 million people involved. In the current scenario
unavailability of a comprehensive information database on agriculture system has often led to
inefficiency in performance of the existing stakeholders. 

Various questions arising in the minds of stakeholders have remained unanswered. The authors
have listed a few below:

1. No systematic and sharable database exists on:

1. Crops that can grow in any area

2. Area covered by each crop
3. Tentative yield of each crop
4. Farmers (names, land size, shape, location) engaged in cropping practice in that
area and details of their land holdings
2. Exporters require data on:

1. Acreage of crop that would be available for export

2. Base price that can be fixed based on supply and demand
3. Time by which the crop may reach the mandi
2. Insurance sector companies require data:

1. To ascertain the actual premium to be levied in each ‘Insurance Circle’

2. To monitor growth of the Insurer’s crop
3. To ascertain if there is a real loss in the crop of the insurer
4. To assess the actual amount of compensation to be paid to the insurer
5. For timely payment of compensation in order to attract the farmer
2. Fertilizer distribution companies require data on:

1. Crop type so that an assessment on the requirement of fertilizer in the region can
be made
2. Land suitability and acreage of crop type to ascertain demand and supply of
seeds & fertilizer
2. Farmers require data on:

1. Crop type that will be best suited for their field during a particular season
2. Type and amount of fertilizer to be applied
3. Volume of water required for best yields
4. Location of mandi and the current price of their product in the market
 2. Government require data on:

1. Total expected produce of each crop type during the current year
2. Floods/draught conditions developing in different area
3. The farmers impacted by crop damage
4. The total irrigation water requirements and water conservation plan
5. Capacity of cold storage, godown and subsequent transport planning for
disbursement
6. Total farm subsidies and whether the system is fully transparent
7. Tentative revenue collection
8. Cadastral level information
9. The location to open new mandi based on crop field location

Application of Remote Sensing and GIS for agriculture in India

In the early 1980’s, the Department of Space, India initiated the use of remote sensing for land,
wasteland, and hill area development. In early 1990’s ITC, a private company extensively used
remote sensing for crop acreage estimation. Presently ITC has its own portal e-kisan for farmers
where they can easily access information on the crop and mandi to sell their crop. NDDB has
developed a portal for purchase of milk at a rate based on the amount of fat in milk. ikisan is
being developed as a comprehensive Agri portal to address the information, knowledge and
business requirements of various players in the Agri arena such as Farmers, trade channel
partners and Agri input/output companies.

Satellite based remote sensing technique combined with limited field survey provides valuable
information in quick time. The data generated from satellite imageries provide information on the
status of crops under observation at any particular date, and can be processed quickly. This
inherent advantage provides a synoptic view, making it possible to analyze the status and trend
of transplantation, crop growth and harvesting throughout the study area.

Wide spread application of remote sensing and GIS will be helpful for creating a systematic and
sharable database on crop related issues and answer the unanswered questions of different
stakeholders.

The figure below shows a general methodology adopted for extraction of data using
remote sensing & GIS and its dissemination to different stakeholders. 
 Fig.1 Application of RS and GIS in agriculture

Many private companies like RMSI are engaged in providing remote sensing and GIS
based services to different segments of agriculture. In the subsequent chapters the
authors have discussed a few modern agricultural applications. 

Data on agriculture for exporters 

As discussed earlier, exporters need to fix a price with their customers as well as with
the farmers well before the harvesting takes place. Such committed commerce can only
be obtained by a systematic flow of information. The information sought by the
exporters includes variety wise acreage estimation#, production estimation, health
monitoring of crops, knowledge on draught and flood conditions and understand the
farmer’s mind-set (farmer’s questionnaire survey). The authors have executed similar
projects for Basmati crop in four states of North India. 

These projects may involve the use of multi-temporal/multi-satellite sensor images

depending on the requirement. The study also requires extensive field validation
including collection of data from CCE experiments. A few indicative inputs are
mentioned below. 
Agriculture data for fertilizer distribution companies
Different crops and agricultural fields require different types and amount of fertilizer. It is
often observed that there is either a shortage or over supply of certain fertilizer in the
market. This happens due to lack of information on agricultural fields. 

Analyzing landuse, land capability, soil characteristics and farmer’s interest one can
estimate the fertilizer requirement for a particular area.
 Fig.4 GIS analysis for assessment of fertilizer requirement

Comprehensive agricultural information 

The authors feel that apart from the various approaches adopted so far, the solution to
all the existing problems of various stakeholders, farmers, Government and
industrialists/exporters can be solved only by developing remote sensing & GIS based
Agriculture Information System. In the proposed system, there will be three sections of
RS-GIS component aided with GPS based field survey. Details on the various layers to
be prepared and the sources on database creation are discussed below.

Creation of cadastral level information system

 Field Information System - With the launch of Cartosat satellite having a

resolution of 2.5m it is now possible to map the boundaries of each field. This
data supplemented with information from field and other sources will help in
creation of ‘Field Information System’
 Site Suitability Studies – Use of satellite images and other ancillary & historical
information will be done to create a plot level site suitability map for each season.
This map will be very helpful in selection of appropriate crop for maximum return.
Following layers will be required to be created for site suitability analysis:

- Soil map
- Soil salinity
- Soil pH
- Canal and distributaries network
- Surface water bodies distribution (river, ponds and lakes)
- Historical rainfall data
 - DEM
- LU/LC

System for on-line monitoring of crops

Regular monitoring of crops helps in taking proper measures based on the nature of risk
for a particular crop field. Monitoring of crops also helps in calculation of acreage, crop
stress and prediction of yield. This in turn helps different stakeholders in planning and
management of crops. Following layers need to be created during different life span of
crops to monitor their proper growth and finally the yield:
- Temperature 
- Rainfall
- NDVI /crop stress
- Evapo-transpiration data
- Total precipitable water data
- Agricultural practices (transplantation, harvesting, tillering and flowering dates)
- Additional information about fertilizers, seeds etc

Market related database

Data on different aspects of market is a critical component for agriculture information
system. Following layers will be required to be created:
- Creation of field-level crop inventory
- Location of different mandi’s
- Market-wise information on major agricultural commodities
- Timely forecast on production
- Demand and supply of commodities
- Mapping of transportation network (highways, railway and other roads)
- Shortest route from crop field to mandi
- Information on current price

Web based information system

In order to provide complete information to the farmers, traders and consumers - web
GIS* has been effectively used and easily accessed through Internet from any part of
the world. This system includes information about the crop varieties, farm management
practices, markets, current prices and weather related information amongst others.

The concept of e-chaupal of ITC helps farmers to sell their produce directly and thereby
fetch good returns. Farmers can send on-line queries related to crops, markets, and
crop management practices through various centers.
 Fig.5 Components of web-GIS for agriculture

Conclusion
Application of remote sensing and GIS is revolutionizing planning and management in
the field of agriculture. Various agencies are working independently on different
segments of the problems discussed above. However, the efforts made in this field are
still insignificant and there is a need for development of an integrated database. The
information derived from this data can be used to reveal vegetative health, pinpoint the
location of non-productive areas, and help in effectively planning and analyzing
operations. This information can be shared with all those associated with management
and marketing of crops to plan for their procurement, storage, distribution and export, in
advance.
  |  Remote Sensing  |  Winds  |  Soil  |  Crop Yield  |  GHCC Home  | 

What is precision farming?

 Knowing and caring where you are in a field.

What can precision farming do for me?

 Improve Crop Yield.
 Provide information to make better management decisions.
 Reduce chemical and fertilizer costs through more efficient application.
 Provide more accurate farm records.
 Increase profit margin.
 Reduce pollution.

Who is involved in this precision agriculture study?

 Alabama Space Grant Consortium
 Georgia Space Grant Consortium
 NASA Global Hydrology and Climate Center
 Auburn University
 University of Georgia
 Contacts

Where can I find out more?

 Geotimes Feature Article - "Precision Agriculture: Changing the Face of
Farming"More information
 STATE REMOTE SENSING APPLICATION CENTER
 (Department Of Science & Technology)
 Govt. Of Arunachal Pradesh
 Vivek Vihar, Itanagar-791 113
1. Vikram sarabhai space center.(VSSC), thiruanatpuram.
2. Isro satellite center(ISAC), Banglore.
3. Space Application Center.(SAC), Ahmedabad.
4. Master Control Facility(MCF),Bhopal.
5. National Remote Sencing Center (NRSC),Hyderabad.
6. Regional Remote Sencing Centers (RRSC), Banglore, Dhehradun, Nagpur,
Jodhpur, Kharagpur.

And so many all over india.