118

Fundamentals of Satellite Remote Sensing

their current conditions. For those end users, current satellite missions may already
be considered operational detection of fires.
A clear example of specific-purpose missions that have been successful is the meteo-
rological satellites, which are built to fulfill the requirements of the weather forecasting
community. Therefore, the technical characteristics of the sensor are well adjusted to the
user requirements, although they may be used for other applications not initially intended
(such as NOAA-AVHRR for vegetation monitoring). In the near future, the reduction of
sensor and satellite costs may create a growing tendency to specific-user missions, con-
verting remote sensing into an operational tool for a wider range of applications.

4.2  Types of interpretation

The interpretation of digital values acquired by the sensor can be approached in dif-
ferent ways, leading to several procedures to extract information from remote sensing
data. Considering the final goal of the interpretation process and the target variables,
four types of image interpretation can be distinguished (Figure 4.2): thematic classifi-
cation, generation of biophysical variables, change detection, and spatial patterns.

Classification

Classes/boundaries

Models

Continuous variable

Change detection

Intensity and
direction

Position

Position
Density

RS-GIS Connectivity
Structure-measurements

Figure 4.2  Types of image interpretation.

Basis for Interpretation of Remote Sensing Images 119

4.2.1 Thematic Classification
This analysis involves assigning each element of an image to a certain category (land
cover, crop type, vegetation species, etc.) through either visual or digital interpretation.
This approach aims to label each pixel with the most appropriate thematic class.
This has been the most common application of image interpretation, as a direct
inheritance of classic photointerpretation. Conceptually, this approach implies con-
verting the original interval scale of the raw image to a categorical one. Visual
analysis is appropriate for this goal, since the human interpreter can integrate a
wide variety of criteria to differentiate neighbor surfaces (see Chapter 5). Digital
procedures can also be used for the same goal by classifing the image based on sta-
tistical techniques (Tso and Mather 2001), which try to compare every element of
the image with a set of reference patterns (see Chapter 7, Section 7.2).

4.2.2  Generation of Biophysical Variables

A second goal of remote sensing interpretation aims to generate the spatial distribu-
tion of a biophysical variable that is derived from the detector measurements through
an empirical or physical model (Chapter 7, Section 7.1). In this case, the goal is not to
obtain categories but to convert raw quantitative measurements to calibrated interval-.
scale measurements. Therefore, the quantitative nature of the sensor measurements
is fully exploited in this case, since the remote sensing image is considered a system-
atic sample of a physical variable. The distance sampling in this case is the sensor
spatial resolution since the sensor requires a radiance measurement every n meters
(n = pixel size).
Even in the case of meteorological satellites of low spatial resolution, spatial sam-
pling provided by satellite images is much denser than any observation network of
ground sensors, and therefore, they should provide a better spatial representation of
the target variable. For example, sea surface temperature can be derived from sam-
ples taken by buoys or ships’ transects, by interpolation to create a temperature map.
With satellite observations, measurements of temperature can be obtained twice a
day every kilometer from the MODIS or AVHRR sensors and every 15–30 min at
coarser resolutions from the geostationary meteorological satellites. In both cases,
the spatial coverage would be much more dense and precise than ground observa-
tion. This also applies to other oceanographic variables, such as ocean height, chlo-
rophyll content, or water turbidity.
Obviously, this interpretation approach is only applicable when digital and cali-
brated information is available, that is, when there is a consistent relationship between
the data of the image and the given physical variable.

4.2.3  Change Detection

One of the main advantages of satellite-based remote sensing is its potential to moni-
tor dynamic phenomena, thanks to repeated observations. This monitoring potential
is invaluable in many environmental processes: urban growth, deforestation, wet-
lands drying, floods, etc. From this point of view, the goal of the interpretation is
120 Fundamentals of Satellite Remote Sensing

identifying image changes between two or more dates (Luneta and Elvidge 1998).
Change detection can be performed over classified images or over biophysical param-
eters (see Chapter 7, Section 7.3).

4.2.4  Spatial Patterns

Finally, satellite imagery can also be considered as a representation of the landscape
mosaic. From this standpoint, the image can be used to measure spatial properties
of objects within the observed area: size, connectivity, shape, etc. (Frohn 1998). The
spatial structure can also be used to improve the discrimination of thematic catego-
ries, measuring their spatial diversity or homogeneity (see Chapter 7, Section 7.4).

4.3  Organization of Remote Sensing project

Assuming that a certain project can be carried out and is attainable through remote
sensing techniques, some aspects have to be defined to better organize the project
workflow. Several decisions need to be made: which sensor is most suitable for the
analysis, how many images are required, what dates are preferred, which methods will
be applied, and how much and when fieldwork and ground truth are required. These
decisions must be made on the basis of the project requirements and objectives, the
current potentials of different sensor systems, and the most suitable interpretation tech-
niques. A review of these aspects would help improve the management of the project.

4.3.1 Description of Objectives
A clear definition of project objectives is crucial for making proper decisions on the role
of remote sensing for any particular task. The project requirements should guide the
decisions regarding which remote sensing data are most suitable for any particular proj-
ect: sensor, number of images, dates, and so on, as well as the appropriate methodology.
A broad range of remote sensing projects can be established based on whether the
projects are defined by the end user or proposed by the remote sensing interpreter. The
former implies that an institution, either a government body or a private company, states
its requirements and the remote sensing specialist has to figure out how to meet them in
a cost-effective and timely way. With the latter approach, the specialist makes a proposal
regarding the whole project, including the statement of objectives. This is commonly the
case with research and development projects, when the remote sensing scientists define
their own research agenda that is proposed to be funded by a target institution. When the
set of objectives is defined by the end user, the remote sensing specialist does not have
much of a role to play, and the following comments will not be of much use in these cases.
They will be useful, however, when the project is defined by the remote sensing scientist.
As a general rule, any proposal of a remote sensing project should be based on
clear and well-defined set of objectives that are compatible with the remote sensing
capabilities. This comment might seem obvious, but quite often, unrealistic remote
sensing projects have been established that do not consider existing sensor limita-
tions. Some remote sensing users have been sold wrong expectations regarding the