Abstract
The high demand for unmanned aerial systems (UASs) reflects the notable impact that these systems have had on the remote sensing field in recent years. Such systems can be used to discover new findings and develop strategic plans in related scientific fields. In this work, a case study is performed to describe a novel approach that uses a UAS with two different sensors and assesses the possibility of monitoring peatland in a small area of a plantation forest in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. First, a multicopter drone with an onboard camera was used to collect aerial images of the study area. The structure from motion (SfM) method was implemented to generate a mosaic image. A digital surface model (DSM) and digital terrain model (DTM) were used to compute a canopy height model (CHM) and explore the vegetation height. Second, a multicopter drone combined with a thermal infrared camera (Zenmuse-XT) was utilized to collect both spatial and temporal thermal data from the study area. The temperature is an important factor that controls the oxidation of tropical peats by microorganisms, root respiration, the soil water content, and so forth. In turn, these processes can alter the greenhouse gas (GHG) flux in the area. Using principal component analysis (PCA), the thermal data were processed to visualize the thermal characteristics of the study site, and the PCA successfully extracted different feature areas. The trends in the thermal information clearly show the differences among land cover types, and the heating and cooling of the peat varies throughout the study area. This study shows the potential for using UAS thermal remote sensing to interpret the characteristics of thermal trends in peatland environments, and the proposed method can be used to guide strategical approaches for monitoring the peatlands in Indonesia.
Highlights
The peatland issues in Indonesia have drawn attention from national and international stakeholders, after the 2015 megafire that burned 0.9 million ha of peatlands, mostly in the southeastern province of Sumatra and southern Kalimantan and Papua [1]
Even with the emerging trends of unmanned aerial systems (UASs) and photogrammetry, the mapping of spatial extent with thermal sensors is rarely seen. This is the case especially in the peat environment of Indonesia, which could give important perspectives in visualizing the peat temperature to consider the heterogeneity of the area for the conditions of oxidation
In this first pilot examination, the possibility of using UAS multicopter drones and thermal infrared cameras to map the spatiotemporal characteristics of the peatland plantation area is explored to potentially identify significant trends that can be interpreted through aerial remote sensing
Summary
The peatland issues in Indonesia have drawn attention from national and international stakeholders, after the 2015 megafire that burned 0.9 million ha of peatlands, mostly in the southeastern province of Sumatra and southern Kalimantan and Papua [1]. Even with the emerging trends of UASs and photogrammetry, the mapping of spatial extent with thermal sensors is rarely seen This is the case especially in the peat environment of Indonesia, which could give important perspectives in visualizing the peat temperature to consider the heterogeneity of the area for the conditions of oxidation. By achieving a complete mapping of thermal images and applying them for spatial analysis, new perspectives could be achieved that cannot be delineated from only point observations In this first pilot examination, the possibility of using UAS multicopter drones and thermal infrared cameras to map the spatiotemporal characteristics of the peatland plantation area is explored to potentially identify significant trends that can be interpreted through aerial remote sensing
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 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 callDisclaimer: 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.
