Detection of Fishing Boats in the Northwest Pacific Using Satellite Nighttime Image

Abstract

In recent years, Spatial and temporal dynamic monitoring of fishing boats has become an important data source for understanding the distributional dynamics of fisheries and for combating illegal fishing. Visible infrared imaging radiometer suite (VIIRS) Day / night band (DNB) nighttime remote sensing images can be used to monitor night fishing lights. In the study that we are reporting here, spike detection and threshold segmentation techniques were used to identify Pacific saury fishing boats employing night lights as fish attractors. GIS tools were then used to extract and analyze the fishing boat position and operation status. The results show that the method proposed in this study can effectively identify the location and operation status of Pacific saury fishing boats, and provide useful information for further understanding the spatial distribution and dynamics of Pacific saury fishing boats in the northwest Pacific region.