Abstract
ABSTRACT This study aimed to verify the applicability of using MODIS-EVI sensor time series for land use and vegetation cover mapping in the Pampa biome, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. The study period comprised the months from June 2013 to June 2014. The procedures included the use of MODIS Sensor images, altimetric data and nighttime images, associated with a hierarchical decision tree classifier, constructed using the C4.5 algorithm. The proposed approach stems from the consideration that the study area has varying characteristics and, therefore, should be treated simultaneously by different and intuitive classifiers, which justifies the choice of decision tree. To evaluate the results, reference data acquired from Landsat 8-OLI satellite images and IBGE data were used. The classification using the MODIS time series showed a global accuracy of 90.09% and Kappa index of 0.8885. When compared to the IBGE reference data, the Soybean class obtained a correlation coefficient of 0.94, the rice class obtained 0.97 and the silviculture class obtained the lowest value, 0.78. The highest spectral similarities were found in the vegetation cover classes, such as grassland, forest and silviculture. Therefore, with the use of multitemporal data from the MODIS sensor, combined with the use of altimetric data and nighttime images, it is possible to generate a land use and vegetation cover map for the Pampa biome with an acceptable accuracy, considering the MODIS sensor resolution limitations.
Highlights
The Pampa biome, Southern Brazil, has shown land use and vegetation cover changes in the last years, notably due to the conversion of grassland areas to grain farming or silviculture (Maraschin, 2009)
This study aimed to propose a methodology for land use and vegetation cover classification in large areas using MODIS-enhanced vegetation index (EVI) time series, SRTM elevation model and nighttime images (DMSP-OLS), and employing a hierarchical decision tree (DT) classifier, constructed using the C4.5 algorithm for the entire Pampa biome located in the Rio Grande do Sul state, Southern Brazil
The land use and vegetation cover map for the Pampa biome produced for the year 2014 showed quantitative results in terms of area compatible with the data recorded by IBGE
Summary
The Pampa biome, Southern Brazil, has shown land use and vegetation cover changes in the last years, notably due to the conversion of grassland areas to grain farming or silviculture (Maraschin, 2009). There is a need for a continuous monitoring of the land use and vegetation cover transformations in this biome. Vegetation indices derived from MODIS sensor have been used in a wide variety of applications, with the purpose of mapping and monitoring land use and vegetation cover. A particular example is the study of Liu et al (2011), who worked with the land use changes between 1982-2009 in Northeast Asia, using normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) from three different sensors (AVHRR, SPOT and MODIS). There are some studies based on the spectral-temporal attributes of agricultural crops (Epiphanio et al, 2010; Johann et al, 2012; Brown et al, 2013; Zhou et al, 2013)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agrícola e Ambiental
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
