REMOTE SENSING

(REMOTE SENSING & GIS)

UNIT – II

Dr. Rambabu Palaka, Associate Professor,

July 2016
BVRIT
Lidar (also written LIDAR, LiDAR or LADAR) is a surveying technology that
measures distance by illuminating a target with a laser light.
Lidar is an acronym of Light Detection And Ranging
 Topics
1. Basic Concepts
2. Data and Information
3. Electromagnetic Spectrum
4. EMR Energy Interaction with Atmosphere and Earth
Surface Features
5. Indian Satellites and Sensors
6. False Color Composition (FCC)
7. Introduction to Digital Data and Visual Interpretation
Techniques
8. Advantages and Limitations
 Introduction
Remote Sensing is the science and art of acquiring data (spectral, spatial, and
temporal) about objects, area, or phenomenon, without coming into physical contact
with the objects, or phenomenon under investigation.

Electro-magnetic radiation which is reflected or emitted from an object is the usual

source of remote sensing data.

A device to detect the electro-magnetic radiation reflected or emitted from an object

is called a "remote sensor" or "sensor". Cameras or scanners are examples of
remote sensors.

A vehicle to carry the sensor is called a "platform". Aircraft or satellites are used as
platforms.
 Data vs Information
Data can be any character, text, words, number, pictures,
sound, or video. Data usually refers to raw data, or
unprocessed data.
Ex.: Aerial Photograph, Satellite Image etc.,

Once the data is analyzed, it is considered as information.

Ex: Topography, Contours, Elevation, Roads, Buildings etc.,
Data Collection
Medium = Electro Magnetic Radiation (EMR)
 Types of Remote Sensing
1. Visible and Reflective Infrared Remote Sensing
The energy source used in the visible and reflective infrared remote sensing is
the sun. The sun radiates electro-magnetic energy with a peak wavelength of
0.5 m

2. Thermal Infrared Remote Sensing

The source of radiant energy used in thermal infrared remote sensing is the
object itself, because any object with a normal temperature will emit electro-
magnetic radiation with a peak at about 10 m

3. Microwave Remote Sensing

a) Passive Microwave Remote Sensing
b) Active Microwave Remote Sensing. Ex. Radar
 Energy Interaction with Atmosphere
There are three ways in which the total incident energy will
interact with atmosphere. These are
1. Absorption
2. Scattering
3. Refraction
4. Reflection.
 Energy Interaction with Atmosphere
Absorption:
Absorption is the process by which radiant energy is absorbed and converted into
other forms of energy. Ozone, carbon dioxide, and water vapour are the three main
atmospheric constituents that absorb radiation.
a) Ozone serves to absorb the harmful (to most living things) ultraviolet radiation
from the sun.
b) Carbon dioxide referred to as a greenhouse gas. This is because it tends to
absorb radiation strongly in the far infrared (thermal infrared) portion of the
spectrum which serves to trap this heat inside the atmosphere.
c) The water vapour in the atmosphere absorbs much of the incoming long wave
(thermal) infrared and shortwave microwave radiations. The presence of water
vapour in the lower atmosphere varies greatly from location to location and at
different times of the year.
 Energy Interaction with Atmosphere
Scattering:
Scattering is unpredictable diffusion of electromagnetic radiation by atmospheric
particles. It occurs when particles or large gas molecules present in the atmosphere
interact with and cause the EMR to be redirected from its original path.

The amount of scattering takes place depends on several factors including the
wavelength of the radiation, the diameter of particles or gases, and the distance the
radiation travels through the atmosphere

Refraction:
Refraction is the deflection of EM radiation as it passes from one medium with one
refractive index to a medium with a different refractive index.
 Energy Interaction with Atmosphere
Reflection is the process whereby radiation ‘bounces off’ an object like the
top of a cloud, a water body, or the terrestrial earth.

Reflection differs from scattering in that the direction associated with

scattering is unpredictable but in case of reflection it is predicable.
Reflection exhibits fundamental characteristics that are important in the
remote sensing.
 Reflectance
In remote sensing, electro-magnetic energy reflected or emitted from objects
is measured. The measurement is based on either radiometry or
photometry, with different technical terms and physical units.

Radiometry is used for physical measurement of a wide range of radiation

from x-ray to radio wave, while photometry corresponds to the human
perception of visible light based on the human eye's sensitivity.

Reflectance is defined as the ratio of incident flux on a sample surface to

reflected flux from the surface.
 Spectral Reflectance
Spectral reflectance is assumed to be different with respect to the type of
land cover.
 Advantages of Remote Sensing
1. Synoptic View
facilitates the study of various earths’ surface features in their spatial relation to
each other and helps to delineate the required features and phenomena.
2. Repeativity
satellites provide repetitive coverage of the earth and this temporal information is
very useful for studying landscape dynamics, and other land features and change
detection analysis.
3. Accessibility
Remote sensing process made it possible to gather information about the area
when it is not possible to do ground survey like in mountainous areas and foreign
areas. Passive remote sensing can be used in all weather and all time of a day.
 Advantages of Remote Sensing
4. Time saving
Since information about a large area can be gathered quickly, the techniques
save time and efforts of human. It also saves the time of fieldwork.
5. Cost Effective
It is a cost-effective technique as again and again fieldwork is not required and
also a large number of users of different disciplines can share and use the same
data.
 Limitations of Remote Sensing
1. Expensive to collect, interpret, or analyze data.
2. Powerful active remote sensor system, such as lasers or radars that emit
their own EMR, can be intrusive and affect that phenomenon being
investigated.
3. Remote sensing instruments like in situ instruments often become
uncalibrated, resulting in uncalibrated remote sensing data.
4. Inability of many sensors to obtain data and information through cloud
cover and the relatively low spatial resolution achievable with many
satellite-borne earth remote sensing instruments.
5. In addition, the need to correct for atmospheric absorption and scattering
and for the absorption of radiation through water on the ground can make
it difficult to obtain desired data and information on particular variables.
 Types of Satellites
India has launched 84 Indian satellites (as of 22 June 2016) of many types since its first in 1975
The organisation responsible for India's satellite program is the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Types:
1. Indian Remote Sensing Satellites ( IRS; Polar) - Altitude around 700km to 800km – Earth Observation
2. Indian National Satellites (INSAT; Geosynchronous ) - Altitude around 36000 km - Communication

SATELLITE LAUNCHED ON LAUNCH VEHICLE REMARKS

ARYABHATTA 1975 u-11 Interkosmos India’s First Experimental Satellite
BHASKARA - I 1979 C-1 Interkosmos 1st Experimental Remote Sensing Satellite

INSAT -1A 1982 Delta 3910 PAM-D Multi-purpose Communication & Meteorology Satellite

IRS – 1A 1988 Vostok First Remote Sensing Satellite

KALPANA (METSAT) 2002 PSLV-C4 First Meteorological Satellite
EDUSAT 2004 GSLV-F01 India’s First Educational Satellite
IRNSS-1A 2013 PSLV-C22 Navigation Satellite for GPS RTK
Repetitively
SWAT
H
 Launched Resolution
Satellite Sensor Purpose
Date (m)

First operational remote sensing satellite

IRS-1A 17.03.1988 LISS-I 72.5
for large scale mapping.

PAN data is of finer spatial resolution

used to sharpen or increase the resolution
PAN <6 of coarser resolution imagery. It is also
used in various geological, biological, and
engineering surveys and mapping.

IRS-1C 28.12.1995
LISS-III had improved spatial resolution.
Land and vegetation observation. WiFS
LISS-III 23.6
data used for very large scale mapping;
mainly used for ocean monitoring.

Wide Field
189
Sensor (WiFS)
 Satellite Launched On Sensor Resol. (m) Purpose
Ocean Colour Monitor
(OCM) To study surface winds and ocean surface strata, observation
IRS-P4 / of chlorophyll concentrations, monitoring of phytoplankton
26.05.1999 Multi - frequency Scanning
Oceansat blooms, study of atmospheric aerosols and suspended
Microwave Radiometer sediments in the water.
(MSMR)
IRS P6 / LISS-IV 5.8 Monitoring of vegetation dynamics, crop yield estimates,
17.10.2003
Resourcesat-1 LISS-III 23.5 disaster management support etc.

The first IRS Satellite capable of providing in-orbit stereo

images. Used for Cartographic applications at cadastral level,
urban and rural infrastructure development and management,
CARTOSAT-1 05.05.2005 PAN 2.5
as well as applications in Land Information System (LIS) and
Geographical Information System (GIS). It provides stereo
pairs required for generating DEM, Ortho Image products.

CARTOSAT-2 10.01.2007 PAN 1 Same as CARTOSAT-1.

Synthetic Aperture Radar It is useful in all weather remote sensing application. Disaster
RISAT-2 20.04.2009
(SAR) Management applications.

Enables imaging of the surface features during both day and

Synthetic Aperture Radar night under all weather conditions enable applications in
RISAT-1 26.04.2012
(SAR) agriculture, particularly paddy monitoring in kharif season and
management of natural disasters like flood and cyclone.
 False Color Composition (FCC)
The display colour assignment for any band of a multispectral image can be done in an entirely arbitrary
manner. In this case, the colour of a target in the displayed image does not have any resemblance to its
actual colour. The resulting product is known as a false colour composite image.

LANDSAT 7 (Launched on April 15, 1999 by NASA)

R,G,B Description
3,2,1 The “nature colour” combination. It provides the most water penetration.
4,3,2 Standard “false-colour” combination. Vegetation shows in red.
7,4,2 The “nature-like” combination. Sand, soil and minerals show in multitude of colour.
Fires would appear in red. It provides clear imagery in desert region.
7,5,3 The “nature-like” combination. Sand, soil and minerals appear in variety of colour.
5,4,1 Good for agricultural studies. Healthy vegetation shows in bright green colour.
7,5,4 Provides best atmospheric penetration. Vegetation shows in blue. Useful for geological study.
7,3,1 Rocks may appear in variety of colour. Good for the geological study.
Visual Interpretation Techniques
Analysis of Remote Sensing Imagery involves the identification of various targets in an
image, and those targets may be environmental or artificial features.

Elements of Visual Interpretation:

1. Tone: Relative brightness or colour of objects in an image
2. Shape: Form, Structure, or Outline of object
3. Size: It’s a function of scale. Ex.: Ware House or Residential Building
4. Pattern: Spatial arrangement of visibly discernible objects.
Ex.: Urban Roads, Buildings in a Colony
5. Texture: Arrangement and frequency of tonal variation in particular areas of
an image. Ex.: Grass Lands (Smooth Texture), Forest (Rough Texture)
6. Shadow: Provide an idea of the profile and relative height of a target or targets.
7. Association: Relationship between other recognizable objects or features in proximity to
the target of interest. Ex.: Residential areas associated with Playgrounds.
 Reference

Textbook of Remote Sensing and

Geographical Information Systems
M. Anji Reddy
BS Publications