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At least 109 records · Page 6

Evaluation of SWIR Crop Residue Bands for the Landsat Next Mission

This research reports the findings of a Landsat Next expert review panel that evaluated the use of narrow shortwave infrared (SWIR) reflectance bands to measure ligno-cellulose absorption features centered near 2100 and 2300 nm, with the objective of measuring and mapping non-photosynthetic vegetation (NPV), crop residue cover, and the adoption of conservation tillage practices within agricultural landscapes. Results could also apply to detection of NPV in pasture, grazing lands, and non-agricultural settings. Currently, there are no satellite data sources that provide narrowband or hyperspectral SWIR imagery at sufficient volume to map NPV at a regional scale. The Landsat Next mission, currently under design and expected to launch in the late 2020’s, provides the opportunity for achieving increased SWIR sampling and spectral resolution with the adoption of new sensor technology. This study employed hyperspectral data collected from 916 agricultural field locations with varying fractional NPV, fractional green vegetation, and surface moisture contents. These spectra were processed to generate narrow bands with centers at 2040, 2100, 2210, 2260, and 2230 nm, at various bandwidths, that were subsequently used to derive 13 NPV spectral indices from each spectrum. For crop residues with minimal green vegetation cover, two-band indices derived from 2210 and 2260 nm bands were top performers for measuring NPV (R^(2) = 0.81, RMSE = 0.13) using bandwidths of 30 to 50 nm, and the addition of a third band at 2100 nm increased resistance to atmospheric correction residuals and improved mission continuity with Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager Band 7. For prediction of NPV over a full range of green vegetation cover, the Cellulose Absorption Index, derived from 2040, 2100, and 2210 nm bands, was top performer (R^(2) = 0.77, RMSE = 0.17), but required a narrow (≤20 nm) bandwidth at 2040 nm to avoid interference from atmospheric carbon dioxide absorption. In comparison, broadband NPV indices utilizing Landsat 8 bands centered at 1610 and 2200 nm performed poorly in measuring fractional NPV (R^(2) = 0.44), with significantly increased interference from green vegetation

Wells Dean Hively↗

Above-Aircraft Cirrus Cloud and Aerosol Optical Depth From Hyperspectral Irradiances Measured By a Total-Diffuse Radiometer

This study develops the use of spectral total and diffuse irradiance measurements, made from a prototype hyperspectral total-diffuse sunshine pyranometer (SPN-S), to retrieve layer fine-mode aerosol (τ aer ) and total optical depths from airborne platforms. Additionally, we use spectral analysis in an attempt to partition the total optical depth into its τ aer and cirrus cloud optical depth (τ cld ) components in the absence of coarse-mode aerosols. Two retrieval methods are developed: one leveraging information in the diffuse irradiance and the other using spectral characteristics of the transmitted direct beam, with each approach best suited for specific cloud and aerosol conditions. The SPN-S has advantages over traditional sun photometer systems, including no moving parts and a low cost. However, a significant drawback of the instrument is that it is unable to measure the direct-beam irradiance as accurately as sun photometers. To compensate for the greater measurement uncertainty in the radiometric irradiances, these retrieval techniques employ ratioed inputs or spectral information to reduce output uncertainty. This analysis uses irradiance measurements from the SPN-S and the solar spectral flux radiometer (SSFR) aboard the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) P-3 aircraft during the 2018 deployment of the ObseRvations of Aerosols above CLouds and their intEractionS (ORACLES) campaign and the 2019 Cloud, Aerosol and Monsoon Processes Philippines Experiment (CAMP 2 Ex) mission to quantify above-aircraft cirrus τ cld and derive vertical profiles of layer τ aer . Validation of the τ aer retrieval is accomplished by comparison with co-located measurements of direct solar irradiance made by the Sky-Scanning Sun-Tracking Atmospheric Research (4STAR) and in situ measurements of aerosol optical depth. For the aggregated 2018 ORACLES results, regression between the SPN-S-based method and sun photometer τ aer values yields a slope of 0.96 with an R 2 of 0.96, while the root mean square error (RMSE) is 3.0 x 10 -2 . When comparing the retrieved τ aer to profiles of integrated in situ measurements of optical extinction, the slope, R 2 , and RMSE values for ORACLES are 0.90, 0.96, and 3.4 x 10 -2 , and for CAMP 2 Ex they are 0.94, 0.97, and 3.4 x 10 -2 , respectively. This paper is a demonstration of methods for deriving cloud and aerosol optical properties in environments where both atmospheric constituents may be present. With improvements to the low-cost SPN-S radiometer instrument, it may be possible to extend these methods to a broader set of sampling applications, such as ground-based settings.

spectral instrument (SPN-S)↗

Analysis of the MODIS Above-Cloud Aerosol Retrieval Algorithm Using MCARS

The Multi-sensor Cloud and Aerosol Retrieval Simulator (MCARS) presently produces synthetic radiance data from Goddard Earth Observing System version 5 (GEOS-5) model output as if the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) was viewing a combination of atmospheric column inclusive of clouds, aerosols and a variety of gases and land/ocean surface at a specific location. In this paper we use MCARS to study the MODIS Above-Cloud AEROsol retrieval algorithm (MOD06ACAERO). MOD06ACAERO is presently a regional research algorithm able to retrieve aerosol optical thickness over clouds, in particular absorbing biomass burning aerosols overlying marine boundary layer clouds in the Southeastern Atlantic Ocean. The algorithm’s ability to provide aerosol information in cloudy conditions makes it a valuable source of information for modeling and climate studies n an area where current clear sky-only operational MODIS aerosol retrievals effectively have a data gap between the months of June and October. We use MCARS for a verification and closure study of the MOD06ACAERO algorithm. The purpose of this study is to develop a set of constraints a model developer might use during assimilation of MOD06ACAERO data. Our simulations indicate that the MOD06ACAERO algorithm performs well for marine boundary layer clouds in the SE Atlantic provided some specific screening rules are observed. For the present study, a combination of five simulated MODIS data granules was used for a dataset of 13.5 million samples with known input conditions. When pixel retrieval uncertainty was less than 30%, optical thickness of the underlying cloud layer was greater than 4 and scattering angle range within the cloud bow was excluded, MOD06ACAERO retrievals agreed with the underlying ground truth (GEOS-5 cloud and aerosol profiles used to generate the synthetic radiances) with a slope of 0.913, offset of 0.06, and RMSE=0.107. When only near-nadir pixels were considered (view zenith angle within +/-20 degrees) the agreement with source data further improved (0.977, 0.051 and 0.096 respectively). Algorithm closure was examined using a single case out of the five 38 used for verification. For closure, the MOD06ACAERO code was modified to use GEOS-5 temperature and moisture profiles as ancillary. Agreement of MOD06ACAERO retrievals with source data for the closure study had a slope of 0.996 with offset -0.007 and RMSE of 0.097 at pixel uncertainty level of less than 40%, illustrating the benefits of high-quality ancillary atmospheric data for such retrievals.

MODIS↗

Improving the MODIS LAI Compositing Using Prior Time-Series Information

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) long-term leaf area index (LAI) products have significantly contributed to global energy fluxes, climate change, and biogeochemistry research. However, the maximum fraction of photosynthetically active radiation absorbed by vegetation (Max-FPAR) compositing strategy of the Collection 6 (C6) products dictates that the main or backup algorithm is always triggered by observations of different quality, which indirectly causes the observed instability in the LAI time-series. Based on MODIS daily LAI retrievals, this study develops a prior knowledge time-series compositing algorithm (PKA) using a linear kernel driven (LKD) model. Our results show that the newly proposed PKA can significantly improve the LAI composites compared to the Max-FPAR strategy using ground-based observations for validation. We found that the PKA performs better than Max-FPAR in various aspects (different sites, seasons, and retrieval index (RI) ranges), with R2 increasing from 0.69 to 0.76 and root means square error (RMSE) decreasing from 1.01 to 0.84 compared to GBOV ground truth. The same improvement was shown for the ground truth LAIs measured at the Honghe and Hailun sites in northeastern China, with R2 increasing from 0.23 to 0.41 and RMSE decreasing from 1.27 to 1.25. In addition, three newly proposed temporal uncertainty metrics (time-series stability, TSS and time-series anomaly, TSA and reconstruction error metric, RE (the proximity to the main RT-based retrievals)) were applied to compare the stability of LAI time-series before and after PKA implementation. We found that the time series stability of PKA LAI was improved, the time series anomalies were reduced, and the retrieval rates of the main algorithm were also greatly enhanced compared to Max-FPAR LAI. A case intercomparison for Max-FPAR-MODIS, Max-FPAR-VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite), and PKA-MODIS LAIs in the Amazon Forest region showed that the PKA is also effective in improving the LAI retrieval over large regions with few qualified observations due to poor atmospheric conditions (RE decreased from 2.37/2.35 (Max-FPAR-MODIS/Max-FPAR-VIIRS) to 2.25 (PKA-MODIS) and RI increased from 61.94%/59.62% to 66.88%). The same improvement was seen in the BELMANIP 2.1 sites for almost all biomes except deciduous broadleaf forest, where the RE decreased from 1.85/2.13 to 1.15 overall. We note that the PKA has the potential to be easily implemented in the operational algorithms of subsequent MODIS and MODIS-like LAI Collections.

MODIS↗

Fine particulate concentrations over East Asia derived from aerosols measured by the Advanced Himawari Imager using machine learning

Fine particulate matter with a diameter below 2.5 μm (PM 2.5 ) is deleterious to the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. It is often difficult to assess the effects of PM 2.5 on human health over regions with limited ground monitoring sites, especially in East Asia. As an alternative, we estimated near-surface PM 2.5 concentrations by analyzing Advanced Himawari Imager (AHI) Yonsei Aerosol Retrieval (YAER) products. This study incorporates daytime data for East Asia covering the Korean Peninsula, China, Japan, Southeast Asia, and southern Mongolia. We collocated AHI YAER product pixels with meteorological, land-cover, and other ancillary data for the period from March 2018 to February 2019. To estimate PM 2.5 concentrations over wide areas spanning many countries displaying various relationships between aerosol optical depth and PM 2.5 , monthly models were developed by considering both the spatial and temporal characteristics of ground-based PM 2.5 measurements. Random forest machine learning model estimated ground-level mass concentrations of PM 2.5 ; subsequent 10-fold cross validation (CV) yielded a CV R 2 value of 0.81 and a CV root mean squared error (RMSE) of 12.3 μg m -3 . We investigated the spatial pattern of PM 2.5 concentrations over multiple countries and seasonal variation in PM 2.5 concentrations. Diurnal variation of a severe PM 2.5 event in the Korean Peninsula was investigated as a case study. The model captured the extremely heterogeneous spatial distribution of PM 2.5 concentrations peaked around local noon. To measure the capability of the developed model to estimate PM 2.5 concentrations in areas with few in-situ data, its predictive performance was evaluated using a dataset independent of the training process with an R 2 of 0.60 and RMSE of 8.18 μg m −3 . This study demonstrates the potential for satellite-based PM 2.5 estimation for areas with insufficient measuring stations.

Pm2.5↗

Large-Scale Groundwater Monitoring in Brazil Assisted With Satellite-Based Artificial Intelligence Techniques

Here, we develop and test an artificial intelligence (AI)-based approach to monitor major Brazilian aquifers. The approach combines Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) data and ground-based hydrogeological measurements from Brazil’s Integrated Groundwater Monitoring Network at hundreds of wells distributed in twelve aquifers across the country. We tested model ensembles based on three AI approaches: Extreme Gradient Boost, Light Gradient Boosting Model and CatBoost, followed by a Linear Regression (LR) step. The approach is further boosted with wavelet and seasonal decomposition processes applied to GRACE data. To determine the AI-based model’s sensitivity to data availability, we propose four experiments combining hydrogeological measurements from different aquifers. Groundwater storage estimates from the Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) are used as benchmark. A sensitivity analysis shows that the LR-based model ensemble is the best suited and to reproduce groundwater storage change in all studied Brazilian aquifers. Results show that the proposed approach outperforms GLDAS in all experiments, with an RMSE value of 2.68cm for the experiment that covers all monitored wells in Brazil. GLDAS resulted in RMSE=6.76cm. Using our AI model outputs, we quantified the groundwater storage change of two major aquifers, Urucuia and Bauru-Caiuá, over the past two decades: -31km 3 and -6km 3 , respectively. Water loss is driven by a prolonged drought across most of the country and intensification of groundwater pumping for irrigation. This study demonstrates that combining satellite data and AI can be a cost-effective alternative to monitor poorly equipped aquifers at the continental scale, with possible global replicability.

GRACE↗

Enabling Advanced Snow Physics within Land Surface Models Through an Interoperable Model-Physics Coupling Framework

Accurate estimation of snow accumulation and melt is a critical part of decision-making in snow-dominated watersheds. In this study, we demonstrate a flexible methodology to couple a detailed snow model, Crocus, separately to two different land surface models (LSMs), Noah-MP and Noah. The original LSMs and the coupled models (Noah-MP-Crocus and Noah-Crocus) are used to simulate snow depth, snow water equivalent, and other water and energy states and fluxes. The results of simulations are compared against a wide range of independent gridded and point scale reference datasets. Our results show that coupling the detailed snow model, Crocus, with the LSMs improves the snow depth and snow water equivalent relative to independent observations. Overall, larger improvements are obtained with coupling Crocus to the Noah LSM, with the coupled Noah-Crocus configuration reducing the RMSE and bias of snow depth from 2-12% and 57-75%, respectively, relative to Snow Data Assimilation System (SNODAS) and snow product from the University of Arizona. On the other hand, smaller improvements are obtained by coupling Crocus with Noah-MP. The Coupled Noah-MP-Crocus reduces the snow depth bias but slightly degrades the RMSE of snow depth and snow water equivalent. The corresponding impacts in other water budget terms such as evapotranspiration, soil moisture, and streamflow, however, are mixed, pointing to the significant need to improve the coupling assumptions of these processes within land models. Overall, the interoperable coupling framework demonstrated here offers the opportunity to include more detailed snow physics and processes, and to advance data assimilation systems through improved exploitation of information from snow remote sensing instruments.

Snow model↗

Improved Soil Moisture Estimation and Detection of Irrigation Signal By Incorporating SMAP Soil Moisture Into the Indian Land Data Assimilation System (ILDAS)

Land surface models have facilitated the estimation of soil moisture over a range of spatiotemporal scales. However, limitations in model parameterization and under-representation of anthropogenic processes restrict their ability to estimate local-scale soil moisture variability, especially over irrigated areas. Assimilation of satellite-based soil moisture retrievals into land surface models can be a viable approach to overcome these constraints, specially over highly irrigated countries such as India, where such applications are rare. Additionally, large-scale validation of modeled soil moisture has been limited over India till now due to lack of a representative station network. By assimilating Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP)-based estimates into the state-of-the-art Indian Land Data Assimilation System (ILDAS) and combining with a new soil moisture station network of more than 200 stations, this study demonstrates improved soil moisture estimations and capture of irrigation signals over the region. The Noah-MP land surface model is forced by multiple local and global meteorological datasets and Ensemble Kalman Filter (EnKF) is used for assimilation of soil moisture. Comparison of open-loop and data assimilated soil moisture against station soil moisture data shows relative spatial mean improvement of 0.0178 in correlation and 0.0029 m3/m3 in RMSE. Further statistical comparison with in-situ data has also shown better results over most of the stations, as evident from improved correlations and reduced unbiased RMSE after assimilation. Finally, the climatology of soil moisture over the different irrigation fractions reveals that data assimilated outputs over irrigated grid cells tend to have higher soil moisture during dry winter season, demonstrating the ability to capture irrigation signals. These findings quantify the value of data assimilation in improving soil moisture estimates and the ability to capture unmodeled processes such as irrigation, which lays the science groundwork for upcoming space missions such as NASA ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR).

Soil Moisture↗

Version 4 of the SMAP Level-4 Soil Moisture Algorithm and Data Product

The NASA Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) mission Level-4 Soil Moisture (L4_SM) product provides global, 3-hourly, 9-km resolution estimates of surface (0-5 cm) and root-zone (0-100 cm) soil moisture with a mean latency of ~2.5 days. The underlying L4_SM algorithm assimilates SMAP radiometer brightness temperature (Tb) observations into the NASA Catchment land surface model using a spatially-distributed ensemble Kalman filter. Version 4 of the L4_SM modeling system includes a reduction in the upward recharge of surface soil moisture from below under non-equilibrium conditions, resulting in reduced bias and improved dynamic range of L4_SM surface soil moisture compared to earlier versions. This change and additional technical modifications to the system reduce the mean and standard deviation of the observation-minus-forecast Tb residuals and overall soil moisture analysis increments while maintaining the skill of the L4_SM soil moisture estimates versus independent in situ measurements; the average, bias-adjusted RMSE in Version 4 is 0.039 m(exp 3) m(exp -3) for surface and 0.026 m(exp 3) m(exp -3) for root-zone soil moisture. Moreover, the coverage of assimilated SMAP observations in Version 4 is near-global owing to the use of additional satellite Tb records for algorithm calibration. L4_SM soil moisture uncertainty estimates are biased low (by 0.01-0.02 m(exp 3) m(exp -3)) against actual errors (computed versus in situ measurements). L4_SM runoff estimates, an additional product of the L4_SM algorithm, are biased low (by 35 mm year (exp -1)) against streamflow measurements. Compared to Version 3, bias in Version 4 is reduced by 46% for surface soil moisture uncertainty estimates and by 33% for runoff estimates.

RMSE↗

Investigation of ERTS/MSS imagery for photo-mapping of the United States

The author has identified the following significant results. A UTM grid has been fitted to the 1:250,000 scale photomap and has resulted in a RMSE of 50 meters which is well within National Map Accuracy Standards. Fitting of the UTM grid to the State of Arizona photomaps is in progress.

Pilonero, J. T.↗

Investigation to develop a multistage forest sampling inventory system using ERTS-1 imagery

The author has identified the following significant results. The annotation system produced a RMSE of about 200 m ground distance in the MSS data system with the control data used. All the analytical MSS interpretation models tried were highly significant. However, the gains in forest sampling efficiency that can be achieved by using the models vary from zero to over 50 percent depending on the area to which they are applied and the sampling method used. Among the sampling methods tried, regression sampling yielded substantial and the most consistent gains. The single most significant variable in the interpretation model was the difference between bands 5 and 7. The contrast variable, computed by the Hadamard transform was significant but did not contribute much to the interpretation model. Forest areas containing very large timber volumes because of large tree sizes were not separable from areas of similar crown cover but containing smaller trees using ERTS image interpretation only. All correlations between space derived timber volume predictions and estimates obtained from aerial and ground sampling were relatively low but significant and stable. There was a much stronger relationship between variables derived from MSS and U2 data than between U2 and ground data.

Langley, P. G.↗

The usefulness of Skylab/EREP S-190 and S-192 imagery in multistage forest surveys

The author has identified the following significant results. The RMSE of point location achieved with the annotation system on S190A imagery was 100 m and 90 m in the x and y direction, respectively. Potential gains in sampling precision attributable to space derived imagery ranged from 4.9 to 43.3 percent depending on the image type, interpretation method, time of year, and sampling method applied. Seasonal variation was significant. S190A products obtained in September yielded higher gains than those obtained in June. Using 100 primary sample units as a base under simple random sampling, the revenue made available for incorporating space acquired data into the sample design to estimate timber volume was as high as $39,400.00.

Langley, P. G.↗

Geometric accuracy of LANDSAT-4 MSS image data

Analyses of the LANDSAT-4 MSS image data of North Georgia provided by the EDC in CCT-p formats reveal that errors of approximately + or - 30 m in the raw data can be reduced to about + or - 55 m based on rectification procedures involving the use of 20 to 30 well-distributed GCPs and 2nd or 3rd degree polynomial equations. Higher order polynomials do not appear to improve the rectification accuracy. A subscene area of 256 x 256 pixels was rectified with a 1st degree polynomial to yield an RMSE sub xy value of + or - 40 m, indicating that USGS 1:24,000 scale quadrangle-sized areas of LANDSAT-4 data can be fitted to a map base with relatively few control points and simple equations. The errors in the rectification process are caused by the spatial resolution of the MSS data, by errors in the maps and GCP digitizing process, and by displacements caused by terrain relief. Overall, due to the improved pointing and attitude control of the spacecraft, the geometric quality of the LANDSAT-4 MSS data appears much improved over that of LANDSATS -1, -2 and -3.

Welch, R.↗

Geometric Accuracy of LANDSAT-4 MSS Image Data

Analyses of the LANDSAT-4 MSS image data of North Georgia provided by the EDC in CTT-p formats reveal that errors of approximately + or - 30 m in the raw data can be reduced to about + or - 55 m based on rectification procedures involving the use of 20 to 30 well-distributed GCPs and 2nd or 3rd degree polynomial equations. Higher order polynomials do not appear to improve the rectification accuracy. A subscene area of 256 by 256 pixels was rectified with a 1st degree polynomial to yield an RMSE sub xy value of + or - 40 m, indicating that USGS 1:24,000 scale quadrangle-sized areas of LANDSAT-4 data can be fitted to a map base with relatively few control points and simple equations. The errors in the rectification process are caused by the spatial resolution of the MSS data, by errors in the maps and GCP digitizing process, and by displacements caused by terrain relief. Overall, due to the improved pointing and attitude control of the spacecraft, the geometric quality of the LANDSAT-4 MSS data appears much improved over that of LANDSAT-1, -2 AND -3.

Welch, R.↗

Cartographic accuracy of Landsat-4 MSS and TM image data

Investigations of the cartographic quality of Landsat-4 MSS and TM image data in CCT-p formats have produced rectification accuracies (rmse/xy/ values) of + or - 2/3 to + or - 1 data pixel for both whole and subscene areas using polynomials of the first through third degree. In order to achieve these accuracies with MSS data, 15 or more Ground Control Points (GCPs) are required, whereas with the TM data sets as few as 5-10 GCPs will suffice. Factors which limit the cartographic rectification accuracies of the Landsat-4 data include: (1) spatial resolution of the data; (2) map and digitizing errors; and (3) terrain relief. Of these factors, data resolution is the most significant, limiting the location of GCPs to about + or - 0.5 pixel. Horizontal displacements due to terrain relief can be minimized by selecting GCPs at or near midrange elevations. Overall, the representative rmse(xy) values of + or - 25 and + or - 55 m for TM and MSS data sets are within U.S. National Map Accuracy Standards for cartographic products of 1:100,000 and 1:200,000 scale, respectively.

Welch, R.↗

Cartographic feature extraction with integrated SIR-B and Landsat TM images

A digital cartographic multisensor image database of excellent geometry and improved resolution was created by registering SIR-B images to a rectified Landsat TM reference image and applying intensity-hue-saturation enhancement techniques. When evaluated against geodetic control, RMSE(XY) values of approximately + or - 20 m were noted for the composite SIR-B/TM images. The completeness of cartographic features extracted from the composite images exceeded those obtained from separate SIR-B and TM image data sets by approximately 10 and 25 percent, respectively, indicating that the composite images may prove suitable for planimetric mapping at a scale of 1:100,000 or smaller. At present, the most effective method for extracting cartographic information involves digitizing features directly from the image processing display screen.

Welch, R.↗

The effects of control order, feedback, practice, and input device on tracking performance and perceived workload

The present experiment examined the influence of several task-related factors on tracking performance and concomitant workload. The manipulated factors included tracking order, the presence or absence of knowledge of performance, and the control device. Summed root mean square error (rmse) and perceived workload were measured at the termination of each trial. Perceived workload was measured using the NASA Task Load Index (TLX) and the Subjective Workload Assessment Technique (SWAT). Results indicated a large and expected effect for track order on both performance and the perception of load. In general, trackball input was more accurate and judged for lower load than input using a mouse. The presence or absence of knowledge of performance had little effect on either performance or workload. There were a number of interactions between factors shown in performance that were mirrored by perceived workload scores. Results from each workload scale were equivalent in terms of sensitivity to task manipulations. The pattern of results affirm the utility of these workload measures in assessing the imposed load of multiple task-related variables.

Hancock, P. A.↗