Chapter 2

PRINCIPLES OF ELECTO MAGNETIC ENEGY AND ELECTROMAGNETIC

SPECTRUM

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Objectives of the Unit
After you have completed this unit, you will be able to:

 State basic characteristics of electromagnetic energy (EME) and Electromagnetic spectrum

(EMS).
 Describe the different application areas of remote sensing in different EMS.
 Discuss interactions of EME both in the atmosphere and Earths surface.
 Differentiate atmospheric scattering, transmission and reflection.
 Explain concepts of atmospheric windows
 Explain the concept of black body

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 Topics under this chapter

 Energy Source and Radiation Principles

 The nature and Properties of electromagnetic Energy

 The Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS

 Concept of Black Body

 Interaction of EME on the Atmosphere

 Atmospheric windows

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 2.1 Energy Source and Radiation Principles

 The sun is the most obvious source of EME for remote sensing.

 However, all matter with temperature above absolute zero (°K, where, n°c=n+273k)
radiates EM energy due to molecular agitation (movement of molecules).

 Thus, all terrestrial objects are also source of radiation, though it has considerably different
in magnitude and spectral composition than that of the sun.

 Electromagnetic energy is the means by which information is transmitted from an object to

a sensor.

 Remotely sensed images record the interaction of electromagnetic energy with the earth’s
surface.

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 The information is propagated by EMR at the velocity of light from the source directly
through free space, or indirectly by reflection, scattering, and re-radiation to the sensor.

The nature and properties of EMR

 As we noted, the first requirement for remote sensing is to have an energy source to
illuminate the target.

 This energy is in the form of electromagnetic radiation.

 EME can be modeled in two ways:

1. wave model

2. Particle model

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Wave Model

 In wave model, electromagnetic energy is considered to propagate through space, and

 characterized by electrical(E) and Magnetic(M) fields which are perpendicular to each other
to the direction of propagation. That is why the term EME used.

Fig.2.1Electromagnetic wave

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 Two characteristics of electromagnetic radiation are particularly important for the
understanding of remote sensing.

 These are wavelength and frequency

A) Wavelength

 wavelength is the length of one wave cycle, which can be measured as the distance
between successive wave crests.

 Wavelength is usually represented by the Greek letter lambda (λ).

 L is measured in meters (m) or factor of meters such as:

nanometers (nm) = 10-9 meters),
micrometers (μm) = 10-6 meters)
centimeters (cm) = 10-2 meters).
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 Fig. 2.2 Wave morphology

B) Frequency

 Frequency refers to the number of cycles of a wave passing at a fixed point per unit of time.

 Frequency is normally measured in hertz (Hz), equivalent to one cycle per second.

 Since the speed of light is constant wavelength and frequency are inversely related to each other.

 The shorter the wavelength is, the higher the frequency and higher energy.
On contrary, the longer wavelength is, the lower frequency and lower energy.

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 Cont
Short wavelength long wave length
-high frequency -low frequency
-high energy - low energy
Example:

-Gama ray - Radio wave

-Ultraviolet ray - Microwave
-X-ray

NB: Understanding the characteristics of EME(R) in terms of their wavelength and frequency is
crucial to understand the information to be extracted from remote sensing data.

Wavelength and frequency are related by the following formula:= inversely proportion

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Particle Model
 The most characteristics of EME can be described using the ‘’Wave model’’ as
described above.
 For same purpose, however, EME is more conveniently modeled by the particle
theory, in which EME is composed of discrete unit called ‘’Photon or quanta’’.
 This approach is taken when quantifying the amount of energy measured by a
multi-spectral sensor.
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 Cont

 The energy released from a radiating body in the form of a vibrating photon traveling at the
speed of light can be quantified by relating the energy’s wavelength with its frequency.

 The following equation shows the r/ship b/n wavelength, frequency and amount of energy in
units of joules

Where

Q= energy of quantum in joules(J)

h= planck’s constant, 6.626 x 10 -34 JS

V=frequency

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 Cont

We can also relate the wave and quantum models of EMR behavior by the
following formula.

Since , C =λv , v = c/λ

Q= hv ====== Q =h* c/λ

The equation for energy indicated that, for long wavelength, the amount of
energy will be low, while in short wavelengths , the amount of energy will be
high.

Thus, the energy of quantum is inversely proportional to its wavelength.

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The Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS)

 As we seen all matter with a temperature above zero k radiates electromagnetic energy of
various wavelength.

 Thus, the total range of wavelength is commonly referred to as electromagnetic spectrum.

 The electromagnetic spectrum ranges from the shorter wavelengths (including gamma and
x-rays) to the longer wavelengths (including microwaves and broadcast radio waves).

 There are several regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, which are useful for remote
sensing.
Classification of EM Spectrum
 Remote sensors are engineered to detect specific spectrum wavelength and frequency ranges

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 Con

 There are four basic classifications of electromagnetic spectrum used in remote sensing
purpose.

 But, most sensors operate in the visible, infrared and microwave regions of the spectrum

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1.Ultraviolet (UV) Region

 Ultraviolet spectrum is the shortest portions of wavelengths, Ranges from 0.3 to 0.446μm

 It is just beyond the violet portion of the visible wavelengths, hence its name.

 In the upper atmosphere, UV light is greatly absorbed by ozone (O3) and become an
important tool in tracking changes in ozone layer

 Fore ample, To analyze depletions of ozone layer

 Some Earth surface materials, primarily rocks and minerals and fluoresce emit visible light
when illuminated by UV radiation.

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2. Visible Spectrum

 The visible wavelength cover a range from approximately 0.4 to 0.7μm.

 The longest visible wavelength is red and the shortest is violet/Blue.

 The light, which our eyes – “our remote sensors” - can detect, is part of the visible
spectrum.

 It is important to note that this is the only spectrum we can associate with the concept of
colors.

 There are a lot of radiation around us, which is "invisible" to our eyes, but can be detected by
other remote sensing instruments and used to our advantage.

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 Common wavelengths of the visible portion of the spectrum are:
• Violet = 0.4 - 0.446 µm
• Blue = 0.446 - 0.500 µm
• Green = 0.500 - 0.578 µm
• Yellow = 0.578 - 0.592 µm
• Orange = 0.592 - 0.620 µm
• Red = 0.620 - 0.7 µm
 Blue, Green and Red are primary colors

 They are defined as such because no single primary color can be created from the other two, but all other colors
can be formed by combining blue, green, and red in various proportions
 Applications of Visible Spectrum RS
Urban feature identification
Soil/ vegetation discrimination
Cloud cover
Precipitation
Ice cover
Ocean productivity

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3. The infrared (IR) region
 The third portion of the spectrum of interest is the infrared (IR) region

 It covers the wavelength range from approximately 0.7 µm to 100 µm .

 This portion is more than 100 times as wide as the visible portion of the spectrum.

 Divided in to two based on their radiation properties. These are:

i. The reflected IR, and

ii. The emitted or thermal IR.
The reflected IR
 Covers wavelengths from approximately 0.7 µm to 3.0 µm.

 Used for – delineating healthy Vs unhealthy forest

 Distinguishing –vegetation
-soil
-rock
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 ii. The emitted or thermal IR.
 The thermal IR covers wavelengths from approximately 3.0 µm to 100 µm

 It is quite different from the visible and reflected IR portions, as this energy is essentially the
radiation that is emitted from the Earth's surface in the form of heat.

 Useful for monitoring temperature variation in land, water and ice. Global warming
4. Microwave Region
 The portion of the spectrum of more recent interest to remote sensing Covers microwave from 1
mm to 1 m.

 This covers the longest wavelengths used for remote sensing.

 The shorter wavelengths have properties similar to the thermal infrared region while the longer
wavelengths approach the wavelengths used for radio broadcasts.
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 Microwave remote sensing is used for in:
Meteorology
Hydrology
Ocean
Geology
Agriculture
Forestry
Ice
Topographic mapping
Concept of Black Body
 It is idealized objects used to model and approximate the EME emitted by an object.
 A black body completely absorbs and re-emits all radiations striking to its surface.
 In reality, blackbodies are hardly found in nature, most natural objects have emissivity
less than one
 This means that only part, usually 80-98% of the received energy is re-emitted.
 Consequently, part of the energy is absorbed- such type of property is relevant in the
modeling of global warming processes.

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Interaction of EME on the Atmosphere

 Radiation from the sun or an active sensor will initially travel through the atmosphere, strike
the ground target and pass through the atmosphere a second time before it reaches to the
sensor.

 The total distance the radiation travel in the atmosphere is called the path length.

 As the radiation passes through the atmosphere , it is greatly affected by the atmospheric
particles and gasses.

 As a result, there are three fundamental interactions of EME in the atmosphere.

1. Scattering
2. Absorption
3. Transmission
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 The radiations experience is a functions of:
Atmospheric conditions
Path length
Composition of the particles
The wavelength measurement relative to the diameter of the
particle.
1. Atmospheric Scattering
 Scattering occurs when particles or large gas molecules present in the atmosphere interact
with and cause the electromagnetic radiation to be redirected from its original path.

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 How much scattering takes place depends on several factors including:

 the wavelength of the radiation,

 the abundance of particles or gases, and

 the distance the radiation travels through the atmosphere

Types of scattering
 Three principal types of scattering are takes place.
I. Rayleigh Scattering
II. Mie Scattering
III. Nonselective scattering

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I. Rayleigh Scattering
 occurs when particles are very small compared to the wavelength of the radiation (ф<λ)
 These could be particles such as small specks of dust or nitrogen and oxygen molecules.
 Rayleigh scattering causes shorter wavelengths of energy to be scattered much more than
longer wavelengths.
 The effect of Rayleigh scattering is inversely proportional to the 4th power of the
wavelength.

Rayleigh scattering = 1/λ4

 Rayleigh scattering is the dominant scattering mechanism in the upper atmosphere.
 The fact that the sky appears "blue" during the day is because of this phenomenon.
 As sunlight passes through the atmosphere, the shorter wavelengths (i.e. blue) of the visible
spectrum are scattered more than the other (longer) visible wavelengths.

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 Con..

 At sunrise and sunset the light has to travel farther through the atmosphere than at midday
and the scattering of the shorter wavelengths is more complete; this leaves a greater
proportion of the longer wavelengths to penetrate the atmosphere.

Fig 2.2 Rayleigh scattering (CCRS/CRT, 2007)

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II. Mie Scattering
 Mie Scattering: occurs when the particles are just about the same size as the wavelength of
the radiation (ф=λ).
 Dust, pollen, smoke and water vapor are common causes of Mie scattering, which tends to
affect longer wavelengths than those affected by Rayleigh scattering.
 Mie scattering occurs mostly in the lower portions of the atmosphere where larger particles
are more abundant and dominates.
 This type of scattering explains the reddish hues(color) of the sky.

Figure 2.3 Mie scattering (CCRS/CRT, 2007)

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III. Nonselective scattering
 This occurs when the particles are much larger than the wavelength of the radiation (ф>λ).
 Water droplets and large dust particles can cause this type of scattering.
 Nonselective scattering gets its name from the fact that all wavelengths are scattered about
equally.
 This type of scattering causes fog and clouds to appear white to our eyes because blue,
green, and red light are all scattered in approximately equal quantities.
 i.e. Blue + Green + Red color=White color.

Figure 2.4 Nonselective scattering (CCRS/CRT, 2007)

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2. Atmospheric Absorption
• In contrast to scattering, this phenomenon causes
molecules in the atmosphere to absorb energy at
various wavelengths.

EME
Atmosphere

surface
 Con…
 carbon dioxide absorb radiation strongly in the far infrared portion of the electromagnetic
spectrum
 This area is associated with thermal heating - which serves to trap this heat inside the
atmosphere.
 Water vapor - absorbs much of the incoming long wave infrared and shortwave microwave
radiation.

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Atmospheric windows
 Because of the effect of atmospheric conditions, electromagnetic energy transmit to the surface is
very specific regions of the electromagnetic spectrum- this influence where (in the spectrum) we can
"look" for remote sensing purposes.

 Those areas of the electromagnetic spectrum, which are not severely influenced by atmospheric
absorption and which are useful to remote sensing purpose is referred to as atmospheric windows.

 NB: one can not select the sensor to be used in any given remote sensing task arbitrarily, rather one
must consider
I. The spectral sensitivity of the sensors available

II. The presence or absence of atmospheric windows in the spectral ranges in which one wishes to sense.

III. The source, magnitude and spectral composition of the energy available in these ranges.

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Interaction of EME on the Earths Surface
 Radiation that is not absorbed or scattered in the atmosphere can reach and interact with the
Earth's surface.
 There are three (3) forms of interaction that can take place when energy strikes, or is
incident (I) upon the surface.
 These are absorption (A); transmission (T); and reflection (R).
 The total incident energy will interact with the surface in one or more of these three ways.
 The proportions of each will depend on the wavelength of the energy, the material and
condition of the feature.
Absorption, transmission and reflection
 Absorption (A) occurs when radiation (energy) is absorbed into the target
 Transmission (T) occurs when radiation passes through the target.
 Reflection (R) occurs when radiation "bounces" off the target and is redirected.

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Two types reflection
 In remote sensing, we are most interested in measuring the radiation reflected from targets.
 There are two types of reflection:
Specular Reflection and
Diffuse Reflection
1. Specular Reflection
 When a surface is smooth we get specular or mirror-like reflection where all (or almost all)
of the energy is directed away from the surface in a single direction.

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2 Diffuse Reflection
 Diffuse reflection occurs when the surface is rough and the energy is reflected almost
uniformly in all directions.
 roughness surface of the feature

 Most earth surface features lie somewhere between perfectly specular or perfectly diffuse
reflectors.
 Whether a particular target reflects specularly or diffusely, or somewhere in between,
depends on the surface roughness of the feature in comparison to the wavelength of the
incoming radiation
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 Con…
 If the wavelengths are much smaller than the surface variations or the particle sizes that make
up the surface, diffuse reflection will dominate.
 For example, fine-grained sand would appear fairly smooth to long wavelength microwaves
but would appear quite rough in visible wavelengths.
Spectral reflectance curves
 We can build up a spectral response for each object by measuring the energy that is reflected
(or emitted) by targets on the Earth's surface over a variety of different wavelengths.
 For example, water and vegetation may reflect somewhat similarly in the visible wavelengths
but are almost always separable

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 Factors affecting spectral response patterns
i. Temporal effects
ii. Spatial effects
iii. Atmospheric effects

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 Thank you!!!

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