Integrated Remote Sensing Research Articles

Land Use/Cover Change Detection of Tiruchirapalli City, India, Using Integrated Remote Sensing and GIS Tools

The rapid growth of urban population in India is a cause of concern among country’s urban and town planners for efficient urban planning. The drastic growth of urban areas has resulted in sharp land use and land cover changes. In recent years, the significance of spatial data technologies, especially the application of remotely sensed data and geographical information systems (GIS) has been widely used. The present study investigates the urban growth of Tiruchirapalli city, Tamilnadu using IRS satellite data for the years 1989, 1992, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2007, and 2010. The eight satellite images are enhanced using convolution spatial enhancement method with Kernel (7 × 7) edge enhance function. Supervised classification method is used to classify the urban land use and land cover. The GIS is used to prepare the different layers belonging to various land uses identified from remotely sensed data. The analysis of the results show the drastic increase of built up area and reduced green cover within the city boundary limit.

Integrated Remote Sensing and Geophysical Investigations of the Geodynamic Activities at Lake Magadi, Southern Kenyan Rift

The tectonic lineaments and thermal structure of Lake Magadi, southern Kenyan rift system, were investigated using ASTER data and geophysical methods. Five N-S faults close to known hot springs were identified for geoelectric ground investigation. Aeromagnetic data were employed to further probe faults at greater depths and determine the Curie-point depth. Results indicate a funnel-shaped fluid-filled (mostly saline hydrothermal) zone with relatively low resistivity values of less than 1 Ω-m, separated by resistive structures to the west and east, to a depth of 75 m along the resistivity profiles. There was evidence of saline hydrothermal fluid flow toward the surface through the fault splays. The observed faults extend from the surface to a depth of 7.5 km and are probably the ones that bound the graben laterally. They serve as major conduits for the upward heat flux in the study area. The aeromagnetics spectral analysis also revealed heat source emplacement at a depth of about 12 km. The relative shallowness implies a high geothermal gradient evidenced in the surface manifestations of hot springs along the lake margins. Correlation of the heat source with the hypocenters showed that the seismogenetic zone exists directly above the magmatic intrusion, forming the commencement of geodynamic activities.

Evaluation of eco-environmental vulnerability in Efon-Alaye using remote sensing and GIS techniques

This study evaluates the environmental vulnerability of Efon-Alaye located in Ekiti State, Nigeria, which is a typical mountainous region with steep slope and an upland ecosystem. An Integrated Remote Sensing and Geographical Information System approach was used to analyse the environmental vulnerability of the region. Satellite data of the study area for two periods 1986 and 2002 were used for the analysis. Spatial multi-criteria evaluation operation was used to generate the vulnerability map of the study area. Indicators used were land-use, vegetation map (NDVI) and slope map generated from digital elevation model. The vulnerability distribution was classified into five levels: potential, slight, moderate, high and extreme. The results show that the environmental vulnerability in the study is at potential level and the driving force of this change is attributed mainly to the cultural activities of the inhabitants of the study area. The result of this study has also shown that using Integrating remote sensing, geographical information system and spatial multi-criteria evaluation model to evaluate environmental vulnerability in mountainous regions will assist decision makers in environmental management. Key words: Environmental vulnerability, spatial multi-criteria evaluation model, GIS, remote sensing, vegetation, land-use.

Integrated Remote Sensing and Gas Techniques for Groundwater Exploration in Semi-Arid Region: A Case of Karamoja Region – Uganda

Groundwater is a precious resource that covers wide geographical extent. Proper evaluation is required in order to ensure prudent use of groundwater resources. The current groundwater assessment in Karamoja region, as in many parts of the world, uses Apparent Resistivity and Vertical Electrical Sounding, which has limited coverage to some localized usually predetermined areas. Comprehensive groundwater development program needs a wide area coverage and large volume of multidisciplinary data.In the present study, an integrated remote sensing and GIS based methodology is developed and tested for the evaluation of groundwater resources of Karamoja Sub Region, Northeastern Uganda. The components of the study are delineation of the groundwater potential zones in the area and evaluation of the relationship between delineated groundwater potential zones and aquifer characteristics.The groundwater potential zones are determined by the relevant layers, which include hydro-geomorphology, lineament density, slope, drainage density, overburden thickness and aquifer depth, rainfall, geology, land use, and soil were integrated in Arc/Info grid environment. Weighted index overlay method developed by Multi Criteria Analysis (Analytical Hierarchy Process) was used to assign weights to the different map layers. All the information layers were been integrated through GIS analysis, employing the use of Natural Break (Jenks) method for classification. Alexandru groundwater potential zoning using the Transmissivity values was used for the final classification of the potential zones and correlation with ground-truth data. Over 70% correlation was achieved showing the significance of GIS in groundwater mapping.

Integrated Remote Sensing and Excavation at Double Ditch State Historic Site, North Dakota

A four-year program of remote sensing at the Double Ditch State Historic Site (32BL8) demonstrates the utility of combined prospecting methods for understanding complex settlements when combined with traditional excavation methods. Magnetic gradiometry revealed countless subterranean storage pits, hearths, and two previously unknown fortification systems that vastly increase the settlement's area and projected population to perhaps 2,000 individuals. Electrical resistance surveys helped define middens, other depositional areas, houses, and earth-borrowing pits. Ground-penetrating radar yielded details about ditch, house, and mounded midden interior forms. Aerial survey from a powered parachute acquired high-resolution digital color and thermal infrared imagery. The former distinguished houses, borrow pits, and ditches from middens and fill areas by changes in vegetation; the latter did the same through temperature variations that also highlighted historic excavations. High-resolution topographic survey allowed documentation of topographic expressions caused by ditches, houses, borrow pits, and mounds. The remote sensing program reduced excavation costs by targeting features. Excavations confirmed anomaly identifications and established a chronology that documents late-fifteenth-century origins to an ultimate contraction in the eighteenth century, with abandonment after a smallpox outbreak about A.D. 1785. Evidence suggests that large mounds formed integral components of the village"s defenses. Excavations also reveal extensive earth moving for mound building, earthlodge coverings, and other reasons still unclear. This practice caused the truncation or obliteration of many earlier archaeological features and forces realization that long-occupied settlements were fluid through time with continual reworking of deposits, and complex depositional, use, and formation histories.

Flood Hazard Delineation in Greater Dhaka, Bangladesh Using an Integrated GIS and Remote Sensing Approach

The objective of this paper is to delineate flood hazard areas for the greatest flood of 1998 in Greater Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. Multi‐date RADARSAT Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Geographical Information System (GIS) data were used for this purpose. Flood frequency and floodwater depth were calculated using SAR data for the development of flood hazard maps. Flood hazard maps were created using a ranking matrix with land‐cover, geomorphic units and elevation data as GIS components. The result of the study demonstrated that a major portion of Greater Dhaka constitutes high to very high hazard zones while only a little portion is not exposed to the potential flood hazard. It is expected that the proposed flood hazard maps will be useful to mitigate losses of lives and property from recurrent flood disasters in Greater Dhaka of Bangladesh.

Land Suitability Modeling of Natural Vegetation Using Integrated Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques: A Case Study

Land Suitability Modeling of Natural Vegetation Using Integrated Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques: A Case Study

Lack of Impact of Hurricane Michelle on Tidal Flats, Andros Island, Bahamas: Integrated Remote Sensing and Field Observations

ABSTRACT Major storms commonly are cited as important geomorphic and sedimentologic agents, and their significance is perhaps most emphatically noted in interpretations of modern and ancient tidal flats. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of Hurricane Michelle on the carbonate tidal flats of Andros Island, Bahamas, by coupling remote-sensing data and field observations. Although regional MODIS remote-sensing data reveal that the passage of Hurricane Michelle suspended sediments across the shallow bank, integrating ultra-high-resolution remote-sensing data with field observations demonstrates that the hurricane had almost no impact on the Andros Island tidal flats. This lack of impact is surprising because the storm still had hurricane-force winds as it passed immediately over some of the focal areas. With this hurricane, storm strength and intra-storm interval were probably not limiting factors. Instead, several influences combined to minimize the storm's impact on both sedimentation and erosion, including the low level of water on the bank resulting from ebb tides and, in the northwestern area, from offshore storm winds, and the short duration of the storm resulting from its high forward velocity. Given the apparent prevalence of widespread storm effects on ancient tidal flats, but the spatially limited major geomorphic impacts of storms on many modern systems, we suggest that the geologic evolution and preservation of ancient tidal-flat successions may have been shaped by mega-storms that simply cannot form in the present global climate. Nonetheless, understanding tidal-flat dynamics and changes on human timescales will require continued monitoring and assessment of low-impact storms such as Michelle, as well the more sensational hurricanes that produce widespread death, destruction, and deposition.

Irrigation Water Requirements and Supply Analysis in Dehradun Region—An Integrated Remote Sensing and GIS Approach

The paper focuses on analysing the irrigation water supply and demand of different crops under three main canals for kharif and rabi seasons in Dehradun region of Uttaranchal state. Crop acreage maps of rabi and kharif seasons have been prepared using LANDSAT TM 5 digital data by applying different image processing and classification techniques. Crop water and irrigation water requirements of different crops have been computed using CROPWAT computer program. Canal discharges have been compared with the irrigation water planning and management and found to be more than the irrigation water requirements in many months, that shows the need of revising the irrigation water management.

An Integrated Gravity and Remote Sensing Assessment of Ground-Water Resources in Central Chihuahua, Mexico

The City of Chihuahua is located in the central portion of the state of Chihuahua in northwestern Mexico. The water resources in this semi-arid region are scarce and the city is experiencing difficulty meeting its water needs. Most of its water comes from nearby basins whose structure is poorly known, other than the recognition that the area is located in the Basin and Range Province. For this study 1,000 gravity stations distributed over an area of 1,200 km 2 provided a Bouguer gravity anomaly map of portions of three basins. Satellite imagery confirmed and defined the local geology and provided a base map for the interpretation of the Bouguer anomalies. Gravity data and a compilation of drill hole and geologic data were used to construct two gravity models of the basins. These integrated structural models reveal grabens filled with Cenozoic sediments with maximum depths in the range of 1,500 to 3,000 m. Some gravity lows indicate possible deep basins obscured by igneous cover. These results suggest the basins may contain aquifers capable of providing additional potable water for the growing population.

Abstract: Integrated Remote Sensing and Structural Geology to Define Complex Fold-and-Thrust Belt Structures 

Abstract: Integrated Remote Sensing and Structural Geology to Define Complex Fold-and-Thrust Belt Structures 

Abstract: A Multi-Disciplinary Evaluation of the Key Controls on Trap Integrity in Australia's Timor Sea Using Integrated Remote Sensing Technologies

Abstract: A Multi-Disciplinary Evaluation of the Key Controls on Trap Integrity in Australia's Timor Sea Using Integrated Remote Sensing Technologies

The Need for a Lexicon of Scale Terms in Integrating Remote Sensing Data with Geographic Information Systems

Abstract The concept of scale is fundamental to geography, yet the definitions for “scale” and related spatial terms can be confusing to those working in other spatial science disciplines. This is particularly true in the emerging multidisciplinary world of integrated remote sensing and geographic information systems, or IGIS's, where data of different types and at various spatial and temporal scales are combined to support complex space-time data analyses. Without a basic lexicon of accepted scale terms, working within an IGIS can breed confusion in the interpretation of data and the models that result from an IGIS construct. This paper provides some terminologies of scale that can be used as a framework for a multidisciplinary lexicon of accepted scaling terms and describes their relationships to an IGIS. It also illustrates how scaling terms can be potentially misunder stood when applied to geographic techniques that are used in disciplines related to geography.

Modeling and Evaluating the Forest Stand Condition with Integrated Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System

Modeling and Evaluating the Forest Stand Condition with Integrated Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System