Image Processing Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter Summary
Urban Planning and Management (UPM) processes are performed at both
city-wide, and neighborhood or site levels. Depending on the spatial level,
data with different spatial and temporal characteristics are required to support
UPM activities. While general land use data is typically required at the city-
wide planning level, data on specific objects composing the built environment
are required for detailed site planning. The degree of planning and the regional
context (e.g., developed vs. developing countries) also influence the data
requirements and the usefulness of specific sensors. The very high-resolution
remote sensing data that has become available fairly recently has been stimu-
lating and encouraging research into remote sensing methods to obtain/collect
data for urban planning and management.
LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Study Questions
Table
5.3
below contains links to internet sites of satellite imagery suppliers. The listed
sites provide sample images and valuable information of different sensors, and allow
you to search for the availability of images for any location. First examine the sites
and then complete the following tasks and answer related questions.
•
Which data types and sensors does each site include? Create a list of the image
data provided on the sites.
For each sensor included in the table, find: (a) the swath width (i.e., the area
•
captured by a satellite sensor on a single image); (b) the time span of data avail-
ability (this is useful to determine if a sensor can provide data for a time period
over which land-use changes occurred, e.g., past few years or decade); (c) the
accuracy; and (d) the cost of the data product.
Select a city of your interest (e.g., your home city). Search the different cata-
•
logues provided on the sites and identify available, cloud-free image data. List
the potential data for your city of interest, note which part of the city is covered
by clouds, and record the exact date of the image acquisition.
Contact the urban planning agency in your city of interest and request details of
•
its standard land use classification system. Which of the available image data
that you identified do you consider most appropriate for the collection of land
use data of your city at a 5-year interval? Write down indicators upon which you
based your sensor choice and develop arguments to justify your choice.
