Image Processing and Classification Discussion

 


The following was another addition to the discussion boards for the SAIT BGIS program.


·                     The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is a commonly used vegetation index in the remote sensing community.  What are some other vegetation indexes?  What platform/sensor were they developed for and what is their application?

There are many different types of vegetation indexes besides the NDVI.  Many are similar, such as the Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index, which is used to remove soil brightness and can be performed with any instruments that provide red and near-infrared bands (Wikipedia, 2021).  While some indices are similar to NDVI, others work differently are provide important environmental variables such as FAPAR (Fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation) (Wikipedia, n.d.). While this can be directly measured on a local scale, on a more broad scale it can be estimated using MODIS and AVHRR sensor on board satellites (Wikipedia, n.d.). A more recent index that has been published is the Broadband Green-Red Vegetation Index, initially the tracking of similar data was limited to only a few satellites (Gaofei Yin et al., 2022), but this index publishing in the Journal of Remote Sensing in 2022 suggests that a similar index can be derived from MODIS data.

·                     What are the similarities and differences between Principal Components Analysis and the Tasseled Cap transformation?

Both Principle Component Analysis and Tasseled Cap transformations seek to find correlations between bands within the image to reduce redundancy (SAIT, n.d.).  The result of this is an image with less bands, but which show maximum variability (SAIT, n.d.). 

There are two key differences between the two transformations.  The first is that Tasseled Cap can only be run on Landsat data, which Principal component analysis can be run on any multi-band image (SAIT, n.d.).  The second is that while they both utilize eigen vectors to complete the transformation, Principal Component Analysis uses eigen vectors unique to the scene being transformed making is a local image transformation (SAIT, n.d.).  The Tasseled Cap transformation is said to be a global transformation as it always uses the same eigen vectors (SAIT, n.d.)

·                     What are some possible inputs to the supervised/unsupervised classification process?  What are some ways to determine the most effective inputs to this process?

For both of these types of classifications selecting the algorithm will be an input that needs to be chosen (James B Campbell & Randolph H Wynne, 2012), although each of them will have different methodologies.  The type of classification, whether pixel or object based will need to be determined as well (Adrian Faraguna & Jay Reid, n.d.)

For supervised classification some of the other inputs we need to choose are the classification schema we are to use and the training sites for that schema (Adrian Faraguna & Jay Reid, n.d.).

For unsupervised classification we do not need to choose training sites, but we do need to specify how many classifications we are seeking in our final product (Adrian Faraguna & Jay Reid, n.d.).

While there is no definitive set of decisions that can be followed to give the absolute best results when it comes to classification (James B Campbell & Randolph H Wynne, 2012), there are some things to consider to help guide your decisions.

For supervised classifications, perhaps the single most important aspect is the selection of training data, it has been demonstrated that this single aspect has a much larger impact on the accuracy of the classification than the classification algorithm does (James B Campbell & Randolph H Wynne, 2012).  When choosing the training data your areas should be large enough to capture the spectral signature of the area, but they should be small enough to maintain a single spectral signature (James B Campbell & Randolph H Wynne, 2012).  These training areas should be away from edges and should not cover wild spectral signature swings, as these will both confuse the classification system (James B Campbell & Randolph H Wynne, 2012).  Our lab manual suggests the minimum size to be N+1 pixels for the maximum likelihood algorithm and Intro to Remote Sensing suggests training data should consist of at least 100 total pixels for Landsat data.

For unsupervised data one of the biggest issues is matching the classified data with the informational classes (James B Campbell & Randolph H Wynne, 2012), because of this it is best to choose a number of classes in excess of your actual end result (Adrian Faraguna & Jay Reid, n.d.).  Having more classes that can be merged to form the desired information classes will be more desirable than not having enough separation (Adrian Faraguna & Jay Reid, n.d.)

In general, the most effective inputs are going to rely on an analysis of the image being classified, a strong knowledge of the area and the experience of the analyst.  Knowing what the output will look like and having a good high resolution multi-spectral image to use as an input will all be beneficial to the process of classification.

Works Cited

Adrian Faraguna & Jay Reid. (n.d.). Lab Manual for the Display and Processing of Remote Sensing Datasets using ArcGIS Pro and Pix4d. SAIT.

Gaofei Yin, Aleixandre Verger, Adrià Descals, Iolanda Filella, & Josep Peñuelas. (2022, March 19). A Broadband Green-Red Vegetation Index for Monitoring Gross Primary Production Phenology. Journal of Remote Sensing. https://spj.sciencemag.org/journals/remotesensing/2022/9764982/

James B Campbell & Randolph H Wynne. (2012). Introduction to Remote Sensing (5th ed.). Guilford Publications.

SAIT. (n.d.). GEOS451 Module 5—Lecture 9—Image Processing. Spring 2022 - GIS Data Capture II (GEOS-451-O4A). https://learn.sait.ca/content/enforced/520161-202140GEOS-451-O4A/GEOS451_Mod4_ImageProcessing1.pdf?_&d2lSessionVal=AtC78OPJVmSPaM1ud9XxLCFOv&ou=520161

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation. Wikipedia. Retrieved July 10, 2022, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraction_of_absorbed_photosynthetically_active_radiation

Wikipedia. (2021, June 5). Soil-adjusted vegetation index. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil-adjusted_vegetation_index

 

 


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