Integrating Landsat with MODIS Products for Vegetation Monitoring - Satellite-based Applications on Climate Change - page 238

Chapter 16
Integrating Landsat with MODIS Products
for Vegetation Monitoring

Feng Gao

Abstract Satellite imagery provides a valuable data source for monitoring vegetation
from space. In order to monitor vegetation dynamic and changes, high spatial resolu-
tion satellite imagery with frequent acquisition is required. However, current satellite
systems cannot satisfy these requirements due to either technical or fiscal difficulties.
In recent years, studies have been focused on integrating high spatial resolution
Landsat and high temporal resolution MODIS data for vegetation monitoring. This
chapter describes three categories of approach to integrate two data sources. The first
category approach adopts MODIS algorithms for Landsat data processing. The second
category approach blends Landsat and MODIS data through a data fusion approach.
The third category approach normalizes Landsat data using standard MODIS data
products. This chapter presents examples and recent applications on the integration of
Landsat and MODIS data. Their advantages and limitations are discussed.

16.1 Introduction

The Landsat satellites have been providing earth observation data continuously
since early 1970s and form a cornerstone for medium spatial resolution remote
sensing. Landsat is the sole medium resolution satellite that provides continuous
global coverage in nearly four decades. Though the failure of the scan-line corrector
(SLC) mechanism on Landsat 7 in 2003 and the decommisioned Landsat 5 in 2012
have threatened this continuity, Landsat data are still the most widely used medium
resolution remote sensing data especially after Landsat data become freely avail-
able from the US Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and
Science (EROS) Center since October 2008 ( www1 ).