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Remote sensing and the Mississippi high accuracy reference network

Since 1986, NASA's Commercial Remote Sensing Program (CRSP) at Stennis Space Center has supported commercial remote sensing partnerships with industry. CRSP's mission is to maximize U.S. market exploitation of remote sensing and related space-based technologies and to develop advanced technical solutions for spatial information requirements. Observation, geolocation, and communications technologies are converging and their integration is critical to realize the economic potential for spatial informational needs. Global positioning system (GPS) technology enables a virtual revolution in geopositionally accurate remote sensing of the earth. A majority of states are creating GPS-based reference networks, or high accuracy reference networks (HARN). A HARN can be defined for a variety of local applications and tied to aerial or satellite observations to provide an important contribution to geographic information systems (GIS). This paper details CRSP's experience in the design and implementation of a HARN in Mississippi and the design and support of future applications of integrated earth observations, geolocation, and communications technology.

Mick, Mark↗

Remote sensing of natural resources.

Remote sensing of natural resources by panoramic and multiband cameras, optical-mechanical scanner, airborne radar and gamma ray spectrometer

Colwell, R. N.↗

Remote sensing of urban environments.

Remote sensing of urban environments for metropolitan information systems noting photographic, thermal IR, radar and microwave applications

Alexander, R. H.↗

Remote Sensing of Water Pollution

Remote sensing, as a tool to aid in the control of water pollution, offers a means of making rapid, economical surveys of areas that are relatively inaccessible on the ground. At the same time, it offers the only practical means of mapping pollution patterns that cover large areas. Detection of oil slicks, thermal pollution, sewage, and algae are discussed.

White, P. G.↗

Improved resource use decisions and actions through remote sensing

Operational uses of remote sensing for improving management decisions and actions concerning resource uses are considered in terms of first generation, or direct-action; and second generation or indirect, delayed-action applications. From among applications completed during 1974-75, seven case studies are offered in illustration of the many contrasts which can be drawn between first and second generation application studies. These include: (1) multi-agency river basin planning; (2) corridor assessment and route location for highway location together with improvement of county-level planning decisions; (3) improving timber management practices; (4) enforcement of new state statutes; (5) county-wide open space preservation; (6) land value reappraisal relative to property tax equalization; and (7) optimizing agri-business processing plant locations.

Hill-Rowley, R.↗

Applications of remote sensing to estuarine management

Remote sensing was used in the resolution of estuarine problems facing federal and Virginia governmental agencies. A prototype Elizabeth River Surface Circulation Atlas was produced from photogrammetry to aid in oil spill cleanup and source identification. Aerial photo analysis twice led to selection of alternative plans for dredging and spoil disposal which minimized marsh damage. Marsh loss due to a mud wave from a highway dyke was measured on sequential aerial photographs. An historical aerial photographic sequence gave basis to a potential Commonwealth of Virginia legal claim to accreting and migrating coastal islands.

Munday, J. C., Jr.↗

Role of remote sensing in Bay measurements

Remote measurements of a number of surface or near surface parameters for baseline definition and specialized studies, remote measurements of episodic events, and remote measurements of the Bay lithosphere are considered in terms of characterizing and understanding the ecology of the Chesapeake Bay. Geologic processes and features best suited for information enhancement by remote sensing methods are identified. These include: (1) rates of sedimentation in the Bay; (2) rates of erosion of Bay shorelines; (3) spatial distribution and geometry of aquifers; (4) mapping of Karst terrain (sinkholes); and (5) mapping of fracture patterns. Recommendations for studying problem areas identified are given.

Mugler, J. P., Jr.↗

The Aristarchus-Harbinger region of the moon - Surface geology and history from recent remote-sensing observations

Photographic and remote sensing observations made from earth and Apollo orbiting spacecraft were used to study the Aristarchus Plateau-Montes Harbinger region. The appearance of the area is described, and a delineation of geologic map units and their stratigraphic relationships is presented. Physical and chemical properties of certain of the geologic units are deduced, and the interrelationships between materials of volcanic and impact origin, including the effects of excavation, redistribution, and mixing of previously deposited materials by younger impact craters, are discussed. A detailed geologic history of the region is developed. Attention is directed to the anomalous red dark mantle on the plateau; it is thought that this layer consists of fine-grained block-free material containing a relatively large fraction of orange glass, and that this layer is probably of pyroclastic origin, laid down at some time during the Imbrian period of mare flooding.

Zisk, S. H.↗

Measurement of suspended solids in lakes and oceans using satellite remote sensing data

Using satellite remote sensing data to measure low concentrations of suspended solids in lakes and oceans requires careful evaluation of background signals from the atmosphere and the water surface. Typical background corrections for Lake Superior are presented and the spectral distribution of the residual radiance from three major categories of turbidity in the lake are determined. The results indicate that for large bodies of water, some general information on atmospheric scattering, water clarity, and the optical properties of suspended solids allows estimates of concentrations of suspended solids to within + or - 0.5 mg/L without using real time ground truth data. Under calibrated conditions the threshold detection level is 0.3 mg/L for the fine particulates dispersed throughout the lake and 1 mg/L for the highly light absorbing effluent from rivers. Comparisons of the minimum reflectance over the open lake areas with reflection from the highly absorbing tannin water from rivers provides a check on the clarity of the atmosphere and the excessive background scatter from the water surface.

Sydor, M.↗

Spectroscopic remote sensing for geological applications

Remote sensing is being used with increasing frequency in the development of geologic maps and in the exploration process. Spectral data from airborne and spaceborne multispectral scanners provide information on rock type and vegetation stress, important in geologic applications. Emphasis is now being placed on direct identification of materials rather than discrimination among geologic units. To do this, higher spectral resolution systems with wider spectral coverage than currently available are required. Imaging spectroscopy in the 0.4 - 14 microns region appears to be the answer.

Goetz, A. F. H.↗

Bidirectional Spectral Reflectance of Earth Resources: Influence of Scene Complexity and Atmospheric Effects on Remote Sensing

Practical methods for remote sensing when scene complexity and atmospheric effects modify intrinsic reflective properties are developed. The radiation history from ground to space of light reflected from individual leaves is initially multiply scattered within the crop canopy, whose geometry provides a controlling influence, then scattered and attenuated as a result of transmission through the Earth's atmosphere. The experimental and theoretical tools for studying these effects quantitatively are under development. A new radiative transfer code which uses Fourier transforms to solve the 3-D equation of transfer was developed. The initial version permits inhomogeneous non-Lambertian surfaces but assumes horizontal uniformity for the atmosphere. The computational results are in excellent agreement with Monte Carlo calculations. Laboratory apparatus to study the variation of spectral reflectance of individual leaves as a function of illumination incidence angle and reflection angle was used. These data can then be used in models to determine canopy scattering effects. Stress tests by observing leaf reflectance at 0.9 microns as a function of time following clipping from the stem was performed. A reflectance increase due to loss of water has been observed.

Diner, D. J.↗

Satellite remote sensing over ice

Satellite remote sensing provides unique opportunities for observing ice-covered terrain. Passive-microwave data give information on snow extent on land, sea-ice extent and type, and zones of summer melting on the polar ice sheets, with the potential for estimating snow-accumulation rates on these ice sheets. All weather, high-resolution imagery of sea ice is obtained using synthetic aperture radars, and ice-movement vectors can be deduced by comparing sequential images of the same region. Radar-altimetry data provide highly detailed information on ice-sheet topography, with the potential for deducing thickening/thinning rates from repeat surveys. The coastline of Antarctica can be mapped accurately using altimetry data, and the size and spatial distribution of icebergs can be monitored. Altimetry data also distinguish open ocean from pack ice and they give an indication of sea-ice characteristics.

Thomas, R. H.↗

Satellite remote sensing over ice

Satellite remote sensing provides unique opportunities for observing ice-covered terrain. Passive-microwave data give information on snow extent on land, sea-ice extent and type, and zones of summer melting on the polar ice sheets, with the potential for estimating snow-accumulation rates on these ice sheets. All weather, high-resolution imagery of sea ice is obtained using synthetic aperture radars, and ice-movement vectors can be deduced by comparing sequential images of the same region. Radar-altimetry data provide highly detailed information on ice-sheet topography, with the potential for deducing thickening/thinning rates from repeat surveys. The coastline of Antarctica can be mapped accurately using altimetry data, and the size and spatial distribution of icebergs can be monitored. Altimetry data also distinguish open ocean from pack ice and they give an indication of sea-ice characteristics.

Thomas, R. H.↗

Geophysical remote sensing

The types of remote sensing images which have applications in geophysical studies are reviewed. Features of the Shuttle Imaging Radar, a synthetic aperture radar, are described and a sample image is provided to illustrate the capabilities for mapping large-scale geological structure. A combined Landsat-Seasat image is shown to yield data on crustal composition. Sea surface topographic features that result from gravitational effects are demonstrated to be amenable to characterization with another Seasat instrument, a radar altimeter. Magsat data allow identification of magnetic perturbations produced by crustal magnetization. Finally, auroral imagery gathered with the Atmospheric Dynamics Explorer are presented which show that the effects of particles bombarding the atmosphere can be detected at UV wavelengths.

Mcpherron, Robert L.↗

Viking Landers and remote sensing

Thermal and radar remote sensing signatures of the materials in the lander sample fields can be crudely estimated from evaluations of their physical-mechanical properties, laboratory data on thermal conductivities and dielectric constants, and theory. The estimated thermal inertias and dielectric constants of some of the materials in the sample field are close to modal values estimated from orbital and earth-based observations. This suggests that the mechanical properties of the surface materials of much of Mars will not be significantly different that those of the landing sites.

Moore, H. J.↗

NASA's future land remote sensing program

The NASA remote sensing plans for the Land Processes Program are reviewed in the context of the science driven programs in ecology, hydrology, and geology. The instrumental capabilities in place on airborne platforms, and those available on the Earth Observing System in the mid 1990s, are considered. Coordinated field experiments which are evolutionary from the First ISLSCP Field Experiment are discussed.

Murphy, R. E.↗