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Chase, P. E.

Publications and source records attributed to Chase, P. E..

ERTS-1: Automated land-use mapping in lake watersheds

The author has identified the following significant results. ERTS-1 computer compatible tapes were used as a basis to generate land use maps in lake watersheds in southeastern Michigan. These maps, generated on a repetitive basis, provide information essential to governmental agencies concerned with planning and control of lake eutrophication. The ERTS mapping products included geometrically current land use map overlays at 1:250,000 and 1:48,000 scale and area measurement printouts. The printouts provide, within the watershed boundaries and by land use category, a quantitative measure of the amount of land, in square kilometers and acres. This quantitative measure of land use in watersheds is essential to the development and application of deterministic models, which compute nutrient flows into lakes and establish lake eutrophication rates.

Chase, P. E.

Automated land-use mapping from spacecraft data

The author has identified the following significant results. In response to the need for a faster, more economical means of producing land use maps, this study evaluated the suitability of using ERTS-1 computer compatible tape (CCT) data as a basis for automatic mapping. Significant findings are: (1) automatic classification accuracy greater than 90% is achieved on categories of deep and shallow water, tended grass, rangeland, extractive (bare earth), urban, forest land, and nonforested wet lands; (2) computer-generated printouts by target class provide a quantitative measure of land use; and (3) the generation of map overlays showing land use from ERTS-1 CCTs offers a significant breakthrough in the rate at which land use maps are generated. Rather than uncorrected classified imagery or computer line printer outputs, the processing results in geometrically-corrected computer-driven pen drawing of land categories, drawn on a transparent material at a scale specified by the operator. These map overlays are economically produced and provide an efficient means of rapidly updating maps showing land use.

Chase, P. E.

Conical scan impact study. Volume 2: Small local user data processing facility

The impact of a conical scan versus a linear scan multispectral scanner (MSS) instrument on a small local-user data processing facility was studied. User data requirements were examined to determine the unique system rquirements for a low cost ground system (LCGS) compatible with the Earth Observatory Satellite (EOS) system. Candidate concepts were defined for the LCGS and preliminary designs were developed for selected concepts. The impact of a conical scan MSS versus a linear scan MSS was evaluated for the selected concepts. It was concluded that there are valid user requirements for the LCGS and, as a result of these requirements, the impact of the conical scanner is minimal, although some new hardware development for the LCGS is necessary to handle conical scan data.

Ebert, D. H.

Utilization of ERTS-1 data to monitor and classify eutrophication of inland lakes

The author has identified the following significant results. Bands 6 and 7 have fine structure as obtained by proper selection of digital levels in processing the CCT's. This is contrary to the imagery density received. This means that the small lakes can be classified in IR for different types of water masses. At least four distinct water masses have been determined for test lakes. They are shoreline, shallow water, and two deep waters. One deep water is patchy and presents difficulty in training set selection. The excellent weather and a completely successful field test form a significant happening. It required 12 orbits over the test area before perfect weather occurred.

Chase, P. E.

Ecological effects of strip mining in Ohio

The author has identified the following significant results. ERTS-1 imagery has identified when reclamation has proved successful, when little lateral extension has occurred in the strip mine, when water has filled an impoundment (4 - 5 acres), and detected narrow contour mines. It has been proven that the CCT contains more information than the imagery received from NASA. A stream is visible in the band 7 digital printout that is not visible in the imagery. Also narrow bodies of water between the high wall and spoils bank and small impoundments (2 - 3 acres) are observed in the digital printout and not in the imagery. Disruption maps (water and bare earth within the mined area) can be made by statistically processing the CCT (decision imagery) or mapping the digital printout with a Bendix digitizer. Reclamation maps will be produced in the near future through decision imagery. There seems little doubt that the mapping of present stripping and the monitoring of the strip mine cycle for changes are practical. Disruption mapping is now an operational capability.

Chase, P. E.

Utilization of ERTS-1 data to monitor and classify eutrophication of inland lakes

The author has identified the following significant results. Significant findings are: (1) one acre lakes and one acre islands are detectable; (2) circular lakes of 7.5 acres and greater reach full density; (3) long channels 100 ft wide are detectable; (4) orientation of lakes is independent of scan direction; (5) lake features are observable in enlargements of CCT imagery produced in the Bendix Earth Resources Data Center; and (6) a decision surface water outline map is presented that was produced from ERTS-1 CCT. A water color literature review, baseline water quality data of the test lakes, and a discussion of geometric corrections of the CCT decision water surface outline map are also presented.

Chase, P. E.

Ecological effects of strip mining in Ohio

The author has identified the following significant results. One result significant as a practical application and for cost benefit analysis is the relative ease with which ERTS-1 will monitor new and unclaimed stripping activities in Southeastern Ohio and in all of Appalachia. Band 5 resolution appears to be better than the often reported 80 meters. The strip mines stand out well enough to be easily identified without other graphic aids. Standing water within the strip mined area stands out in either bands 6 or 7. Areas of several acres are visible. Significant increases in surface extent of water of stripped areas should be detectable on a comparative basis. The degree of reclamation is observable in the imagery in rather gross percentage steps and for areas larger than the bare earth sizes in the table. The gradation in tones in the different bands indicates that probability density imagery using the four bands in CCT data (and statistical processing) is likely to separate degrees of vegetative reclamation.

Chase, P. E.

ERTS-1 investigation of ecological effects of strip mining in eastern Ohio

Evidence is presented of ERTS capability to detect, map and monitor the effects of strip mining. Both enlarge ERTS imagery and statistically processed outline maps and imagery of stripped earth and standing water are compared to aerial photos of a strip mine near Coshocton, Ohio. The outline maps and decision imagery are at present limited to forming a disruption map of recently mined and unreclaimed earth and the resultant standing water within the mined area. It is planned to prepare a map of the reclaimed areas (reclamation map) within the stripped area and to detect and identify ecological effects such as vegetation kills and stream sedimentation external to the stripped areas.

Chase, P. E.

Utilization of ERTS-1 data to monitor and classify eutrophication of inland lakes

A technique is being developed for use of ERTS in estimating and monitoring trophic levels of inland lakes. Preliminary findings are that Michigan lakes and ponds of one acre or more are resolvable in bands 5, 6 and 7 of NASA MSS imagery under fair conditions (haze and 70% cloud cover). In processed imagery (CCT) smaller features, including water color patterns, are evident within some lakes of 40 acres or more. Image distortion of lake size, shape, orientation, etc. is minimal; discrimination of lakes and ponds from various wetlands is good. Subsequent ERTS and aircraft imagery will be correlated with detailed ground truth of water color and quality in eutrophic test lakes.

Chase, P. E.

Utilization of ERTS-1 data to monitor and classify eutrophication of inland lakes

The author has identified the following significant results. Channel 7 is highly useful in surveying surface water in lakes, rivers, and large marshes. It is likely to miss detection of elliptically shaped bodies of 4 acres or less. Further, it is possible that the bodies are distorted and displaced because of lack of correction for sensor response time. These errors might not be critical because:(1) location accuracy is not essential to a surface water survey; and (2) an obviously distorted image is often not in error in excess of 5% The finding that Orchard Lake and other lakes in Oakland County have different densities in channels 4, 5, 6, and 7 is important because it implies that the lake wide water color average is different in the separate channels. Channels 6 and 7 were constant in tonal quality among all the lakes while channels 4 and 5 varied from lake to lake and in various parts of Orchard Lake. These findings are significant because it means that small inland lake color differences are recorded by the MSS even on a cloudy or hazy day. It also confirms that ERTS-1 is performing well enough to be used for correlation to ground truth and aircraft underflights.

Chase, P. E.

Determine utility of ERTS-1 to detect and monitor area strip mining and reclamation

There are no author-identified significant results in this report. Analysis of the strip mine records and aerial photos in the test site (five counties in southeastern Ohio) indicate rapidly increasing stripping in the past few years. The mines are large enough to be detected and their gross characteristics observed in the ERTS-1 imagery. Progress in adapting the Bendix ground station to handling ERTS-1 computer compatible tapes is described.

Chase, P. E.