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Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics
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Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics

A special issue of Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Remote Sensing".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2020) | Viewed by 81357

Special Issue Editors

Dr. António Ferraz

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Guest Editor
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USAInstitute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Interests: remote sensing of vegetation; LiDAR; 3D point cloud processing and pattern recognition; machine learning; 3D forest structure; tree modeling; forest demographics and disturbance; large-scale forest biomass mapping
Dr. Mariano García

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Guest Editor
Department of Geology, Geography and Environment, University of Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain
Interests: remote sensing of vegetation; 3D forest structure and dynamics characterization using active and passive sensors; forest fires (fuels characterization—moisture and structure—and post fire damage assessment and recovery); data integration; machine learning; radiative transfer models
Dr. Rubén Valbuena

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Guest Editor
School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor LL57 2PZ, UK
Interests: forest ecology; remote sensing; LiDAR; forest inventory; tree size scaling theories; forest structure; competition and dominance; modelling; data fusion
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

LiDAR remote sensing is widely accepted as the most appropriate technique to characterize the 3D forest structure and therefore a valuable tool to a broad range of applications that require information in both vertical and horizontal dimensions. LiDAR products in the forestry domain include biomass mapping, fuels assessment, heterogeneity indexes, tree/stand structural traits, ecological indicators, habitat mapping, and forest disturbance and regrowth. LiDAR technology has evolved at an incredible speed and includes new multispectral sensors; increased productivity by using MPiA (multiple points in the air) or SPL (single photon LiDAR); and multiple platforms such as terrestrial, drone, airborne, and satellite. Due to its reliability, LiDAR-derived metrics and models are currently seen as a crucial tool for the calibration and validation of satellite observations with applications in the field of terrestrial ecosystems sciences (e.g., GEDI, NISAR, BIOMASS, Sentinel, Landsat, and SBG). In addition, LiDAR products are being increasingly used to initialize and constrain ecological (e.g., evapotranspiration) and demographic models.   

The Special Issue is calling for original and innovative papers that demonstrate the use of LiDAR techniques from all platforms (e.g., satellite, airborne, terrestrial, and UAV) to advance remote sensing applications for forest science and ecology and support forest inventories. We welcome contributions showing the potential of LiDAR as a valuable tool for current environmental challenges over different forested biomes.       

Welcome topics include but are not limited to the following:

  • Forest structure mapping from terrestrial, airborne, and satellite LiDAR;
  • Operational use of LiDAR data to characterize forest structures;
  • Quantifying carbon stocks using LiDAR;
  • Mapping forest degradation from LiDAR data;
  • Forest structure dynamics using LiDAR;
  • Uncertainty in measuring forest structure;
  • Novel sensors and platforms: multispectral lidar and UAV-LiDAR; 
  • Integration of LiDAR with other remote measurements (SAR, optical, eddy covariance, etc.).

Dr. António Ferraz
Dr. Mariano García
Dr. Rubén Valbuena
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Remote Sensing is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Forest structure
  • Forest dynamics
  • Multiplatform LiDAR
  • Multispectral LiDAR
  • Data integration
  • Forest inventory
  • Forest management
  • Ecological applications
  • Habitat mapping
  • 3D point cloud processing
  • Uncertainties assessment

Published Papers (16 papers)

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20 pages, 3020 KiB  
Article
Using Leaf-Off and Leaf-On Multispectral Airborne Laser Scanning Data to Characterize Seedling Stands
by Mohammad Imangholiloo, Ninni Saarinen, Markus Holopainen, Xiaowei Yu, Juha Hyyppä and Mikko Vastaranta
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(20), 3328; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12203328 - 13 Oct 2020
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3431
Abstract
Information from seedling stands in time and space is essential for sustainable forest management. To fulfil these informational needs with limited resources, remote sensing is seen as an intriguing alternative for forest inventorying. The structure and tree species composition in seedling stands have [...] Read more.
Information from seedling stands in time and space is essential for sustainable forest management. To fulfil these informational needs with limited resources, remote sensing is seen as an intriguing alternative for forest inventorying. The structure and tree species composition in seedling stands have created challenges for capturing this information using sensors providing sparse point densities that do not have the ability to penetrate canopy gaps or provide spectral information. Therefore, multispectral airborne laser scanning (mALS) systems providing dense point clouds coupled with multispectral intensity data theoretically offer advantages for the characterization of seedling stands. The aim of this study was to investigate the capability of Optech Titan mALS data to characterize seedling stands in leaf-off and leaf-on conditions, as well as to retrieve the most important forest inventory attributes, such as distinguishing deciduous from coniferous trees, and estimating tree density and height. First, single-tree detection approaches were used to derive crown boundaries and tree heights from which forest structural attributes were aggregated for sample plots. To predict tree species, a random forests classifier was trained using features from two single-channel intensities (SCIs) with wavelengths of 1550 (SCI-Ch1) and 1064 nm (SCI-Ch2), and multichannel intensity (MCI) data composed of three mALS channels. The most important and uncorrelated features were analyzed and selected from 208 features. The highest overall accuracies in classification of Norway spruce, birch, and nontree class in leaf-off and leaf-on conditions obtained using SCI-Ch1 and SCI-Ch2 were 87.36% and 69.47%, respectively. The use of MCI data improved classification by up to 96.55% and 92.54% in leaf-off and leaf-on conditions, respectively. Overall, leaf-off data were favorable for distinguishing deciduous from coniferous trees and tree density estimation with a relative root mean square error (RMSE) of 37.9%, whereas leaf-on data provided more accurate height estimations, with a relative RMSE of 10.76%. Determining the canopy threshold for separating ground returns from vegetation returns was found to be critical, as mapped trees might have a height below one meter. The results showed that mALS data provided benefits for characterizing seedling stands compared to single-channel ALS systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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34 pages, 9181 KiB  
Article
Simulations of Leaf BSDF Effects on Lidar Waveforms
by Benjamin D. Roth, Adam A. Goodenough, Scott D. Brown, Jan A. van Aardt, M. Grady Saunders and Keith Krause
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(18), 2909; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12182909 - 08 Sep 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2921
Abstract
Establishing linkages between light detection and ranging (lidar) data, produced from interrogating forest canopies, to the highly complex forest structures, composition, and traits that such forests contain, remains an extremely difficult problem. Radiative transfer models have been developed to help solve this problem [...] Read more.
Establishing linkages between light detection and ranging (lidar) data, produced from interrogating forest canopies, to the highly complex forest structures, composition, and traits that such forests contain, remains an extremely difficult problem. Radiative transfer models have been developed to help solve this problem and test new sensor platforms in a virtual environment. Many forest canopy studies include the major assumption of isotropic (Lambertian) reflecting and transmitting leaves or non-transmitting leaves. Here, we study when these assumptions may be valid and evaluate their associated impacts/effects on the lidar waveform, as well as its dependence on wavelength, lidar footprint, view angle, and leaf angle distribution (LAD), by using the Digital Imaging and Remote Sensing Image Generation (DIRSIG) remote sensing radiative transfer simulation model. The largest effects of Lambertian assumptions on the waveform are observed at visible wavelengths, small footprints, and oblique interrogation angles relative to the mean leaf angle. For example, a 77% increase in return signal was observed with a configuration of a 550 nm wavelength, 10 cm footprint, and 45° interrogation angle to planophile leaves. These effects are attributed to (i) the bidirectional scattering distribution function (BSDF) becoming almost purely specular in the visible, (ii) small footprints having fewer leaf angles to integrate over, and (iii) oblique angles causing diminished backscatter due to forward scattering. Non-transmitting leaf assumptions have the greatest error for large footprints at near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths. Regardless of leaf angle distribution, all simulations with non-transmitting leaves with a 5 m footprint and 1064 nm wavelength saw around a 15% reduction in return signal. We attribute the signal reduction to the increased multiscatter contribution for larger fields of view, and increased transmission at NIR wavelengths. Armed with the knowledge from this study, researchers will be able to select appropriate sensor configurations to account for or limit BSDF effects in forest lidar data. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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23 pages, 6621 KiB  
Article
Retrieval of Vertical Foliage Profile and Leaf Area Index Using Transmitted Energy Information Derived from ICESat GLAS Data
by Lei Cui, Ziti Jiao, Kaiguang Zhao, Mei Sun, Yadong Dong, Siyang Yin, Yang Li, Yaxuan Chang, Jing Guo, Rui Xie, Zidong Zhu and Sijie Li
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(15), 2457; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12152457 - 31 Jul 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3387
Abstract
The vertical foliage profile (VFP) and leaf area index (LAI) are critical descriptors in terrestrial ecosystem modeling. Although light detection and ranging (lidar) observations have been proven to have potential for deriving the VFP and LAI, existing methods depend only on the received [...] Read more.
The vertical foliage profile (VFP) and leaf area index (LAI) are critical descriptors in terrestrial ecosystem modeling. Although light detection and ranging (lidar) observations have been proven to have potential for deriving the VFP and LAI, existing methods depend only on the received waveform information and are sensitive to additional input parameters, such as the ratio of canopy to ground reflectance. In this study, we proposed a new method for retrieving forest VFP and LAI from Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) data over two sites similar in their biophysical parameters. Our method utilized the information from not only the interaction between the laser and the forest but also the sensor configuration, which brought the benefit that our method was free from an empirical input parameter. Specifically, we first derived the transmitted energy profile (TEP) through the lidar 1-D radiative transfer model. Then, the obtained TEP was utilized to calculate the vertical gap distribution. Finally, the vertical gap distribution was taken as input to derive the VFP based on the Beer–Lambert law, and the LAI was calculated by integrating the VFP. Extensive validations of our method were carried out based on the discrete anisotropic radiative transfer (DART) simulation data, ground-based measurements, and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) LAI product. The validation based on the DART simulation data showed that our method could effectively characterize the VFP and LAI under various canopy architecture scenarios, including homogeneous turbid and discrete individual-tree scenes. The ground-based validation also proved the feasibility of our method: the VFP retrieved from the GLAS data showed a similar trend with the foliage distribution density in the GLAS footprints; the GLAS LAI had a high correlation with the field measurements, with a determination coefficient (R2) of 0.79, root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.49, and bias of 0.17. Once the outliers caused by low data quality and large slope were identified and removed, the accuracy was further improved, with R2 = 0.85, RMSE = 0.35, and bias = 0.10. However, the MODIS LAI product did not present a good relationship with the GLAS LAI. Relative to the GLAS LAI, the MODIS LAI showed an overestimation in the low and middle ranges of the LAI and a saturation at high values of approximately LAI = 5.5. Overall, this method has the potential to produce continental- and global-scale VFP and LAI datasets from the spaceborne lidar system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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14 pages, 1563 KiB  
Article
Compatibility of Aerial and Terrestrial LiDAR for Quantifying Forest Structural Diversity
by Elizabeth A. LaRue, Franklin W. Wagner, Songlin Fei, Jeff W. Atkins, Robert T. Fahey, Christopher M. Gough and Brady S. Hardiman
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(9), 1407; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12091407 - 29 Apr 2020
Cited by 44 | Viewed by 7264
Abstract
Structural diversity is a key feature of forest ecosystems that influences ecosystem functions from local to macroscales. The ability to measure structural diversity in forests with varying ecological composition and management history can improve the understanding of linkages between forest structure and ecosystem [...] Read more.
Structural diversity is a key feature of forest ecosystems that influences ecosystem functions from local to macroscales. The ability to measure structural diversity in forests with varying ecological composition and management history can improve the understanding of linkages between forest structure and ecosystem functioning. Terrestrial LiDAR has often been used to provide a detailed characterization of structural diversity at local scales, but it is largely unknown whether these same structural features are detectable using aerial LiDAR data that are available across larger spatial scales. We used univariate and multivariate analyses to quantify cross-compatibility of structural diversity metrics from terrestrial versus aerial LiDAR in seven National Ecological Observatory Network sites across the eastern USA. We found strong univariate agreement between terrestrial and aerial LiDAR metrics of canopy height, openness, internal heterogeneity, and leaf area, but found marginal agreement between metrics that described heterogeneity of the outermost layer of the canopy. Terrestrial and aerial LiDAR both demonstrated the ability to distinguish forest sites from structural diversity metrics in multivariate space, but terrestrial LiDAR was able to resolve finer-scale detail within sites. Our findings indicated that aerial LiDAR could be of use in quantifying broad-scale variation in structural diversity across macroscales. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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19 pages, 7761 KiB  
Article
Estimation of Forest Growing Stock Volume with UAV Laser Scanning Data: Can It Be Done without Field Data?
by Stefano Puliti, Johannes Breidenbach and Rasmus Astrup
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(8), 1245; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12081245 - 14 Apr 2020
Cited by 57 | Viewed by 10078
Abstract
Laser scanning data from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV-LS) offer new opportunities to estimate forest growing stock volume ( V ) exclusively based on the UAV-LS data. We propose a method to measure tree attributes and using these measurements to estimate V without the [...] Read more.
Laser scanning data from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV-LS) offer new opportunities to estimate forest growing stock volume ( V ) exclusively based on the UAV-LS data. We propose a method to measure tree attributes and using these measurements to estimate V without the use of field data for calibration. The method consists of five steps: i) Using UAV-LS data, tree crowns are automatically identified and segmented wall-to-wall. ii) From all detected tree crowns, a sample is taken where diameter at breast height (DBH) can be recorded reliably as determined by visual assessment in the UAV-LS data. iii) Another sample of crowns is taken where tree species were identifiable from UAV image data. iv) DBH and tree species models are fit using the samples and applied to all detected tree crowns. v) Single tree volumes are predicted with existing allometric models using predicted species and DBH, and height directly obtained from UAV-LS. The method was applied to a Riegl-VUX data set with an average density of 1130 points m−2 and 3 cm orthomosaic acquired over an 8.8 ha managed boreal forest. The volumes of the identified trees were aggregated to estimate plot-, stand-, and forest-level volumes which were validated using 58 independently measured field plots. The root-mean-square deviance ( R M S D % ) decreased when increasing the spatial scale from the plot (32.2%) to stand (27.1%) and forest level (3.5%). The accuracy of the UAV-LS estimates varied given forest structure and was highest in open pine stands and lowest in dense birch or spruce stands. On the forest level, the estimates based on UAV-LS data were well within the 95% confidence interval of the intense field survey estimate, and both estimates had a similar precision. While the results are encouraging for further use of UAV-LS in the context of fully airborne forest inventories, future studies should confirm our findings in a variety of forest types and conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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18 pages, 12646 KiB  
Article
Challenges in Estimating Tropical Forest Canopy Height from Planet Dove Imagery
by Ovidiu Csillik, Pramukta Kumar and Gregory P. Asner
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(7), 1160; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12071160 - 04 Apr 2020
Cited by 23 | Viewed by 6629
Abstract
Monitoring tropical forests using spaceborne and airborne remote sensing capabilities is important for informing environmental policies and conservation actions. Developing large-scale machine learning estimation models of forest structure is instrumental in bridging the gap between retrospective analysis and near-real-time monitoring. However, most approaches [...] Read more.
Monitoring tropical forests using spaceborne and airborne remote sensing capabilities is important for informing environmental policies and conservation actions. Developing large-scale machine learning estimation models of forest structure is instrumental in bridging the gap between retrospective analysis and near-real-time monitoring. However, most approaches use moderate spatial resolution satellite data with limited capabilities of frequent updating. Here, we take advantage of the high spatial and temporal resolutions of Planet Dove images and aim to automatically estimate top-of-canopy height (TCH) for the biologically diverse country of Peru from satellite imagery at 1 ha spatial resolution by building a model that associates Planet Dove textural features with airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR) measurements of TCH. We use and modify features derived from Fourier textural ordination (FOTO) of Planet Dove images using spectral projection and train a gradient boosted regression for TCH estimation. We discuss the technical and scientific challenges involved in the generation of reliable mechanisms for estimating TCH from Planet Dove satellite image spectral and textural features. Our developed software toolchain is a robust and generalizable regression model that provides a root mean square error (RMSE) of 4.36 m for Peru. This represents a helpful advancement towards better monitoring of tropical forests and improves efforts in reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+), an important climate change mitigation approach. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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22 pages, 5075 KiB  
Article
Stratification-Based Forest Aboveground Biomass Estimation in a Subtropical Region Using Airborne Lidar Data
by Xiandie Jiang, Guiying Li, Dengsheng Lu, Erxue Chen and Xinliang Wei
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(7), 1101; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12071101 - 30 Mar 2020
Cited by 29 | Viewed by 3600
Abstract
Species-rich subtropical forests have high carbon sequestration capacity and play important roles in regional and global carbon regulation and climate changes. A timely investigation of the spatial distribution characteristics of subtropical forest aboveground biomass (AGB) is essential to assess forest carbon stocks. Lidar [...] Read more.
Species-rich subtropical forests have high carbon sequestration capacity and play important roles in regional and global carbon regulation and climate changes. A timely investigation of the spatial distribution characteristics of subtropical forest aboveground biomass (AGB) is essential to assess forest carbon stocks. Lidar (light detection and ranging) is regarded as the most reliable data source for accurate estimation of forest AGB. However, previous studies that have used lidar data have often beenbased on a single model developed from the relationships between lidar-derived variables and AGB, ignoring the variability of this relationship in different forest types. Although stratification of forest types has been proven to be effective for improving AGB estimation, how to stratify forest types and how many strata to use are still unclear. This research aims to improve forest AGB estimation through exploring suitable stratification approaches based on lidar and field survey data. Different stratification schemes including non-stratification and stratifications based on forest types and forest stand structures were examined. The AGB estimation models were developed using linear regression (LR) and random forest (RF) approaches. The results indicate the following: (1) Proper stratifications improved AGB estimation and reduced the effect of under- and overestimation problems; (2) the finer forest type strata generated higher accuracy of AGB estimation but required many more sample plots, which were often unavailable; (3) AGB estimation based on stratification of forest stand structures was similar to that based on five forest types, implying that proper stratification reduces the number of sample plots needed; (4) the optimal AGB estimation model and stratification scheme varied, depending on forest types; and (5) the RF algorithm provided better AGB estimation for non-stratification than the LR algorithm, but the LR approach provided better estimation with stratification. Results from this research provide new insights on how to properly conduct forest stratification for AGB estimation modeling, which is especially valuable in tropical and subtropical regions with complex forest types. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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17 pages, 2326 KiB  
Article
A Full-Waveform Airborne Laser Scanning Metric Extraction Tool for Forest Structure Modelling. Do Scan Angle and Radiometric Correction Matter?
by Pablo Crespo-Peremarch and Luis A. Ruiz
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(2), 292; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12020292 - 15 Jan 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3300
Abstract
In the last decade, full-waveform airborne laser scanning (ALSFW) has proven to be a promising tool for forestry applications. Compared to traditional discrete airborne laser scanning (ALSD), it is capable of registering the complete signal going through the different [...] Read more.
In the last decade, full-waveform airborne laser scanning (ALSFW) has proven to be a promising tool for forestry applications. Compared to traditional discrete airborne laser scanning (ALSD), it is capable of registering the complete signal going through the different vertical layers of the vegetation, allowing for a better characterization of the forest structure. However, there is a lack of ALSFW software tools for taking greater advantage of these data. Additionally, most of the existing software tools do not include radiometric correction, which is essential for the use of ALSFW data, since extracted metrics depend on radiometric values. This paper describes and presents a software tool named WoLFeX for clipping, radiometrically correcting, voxelizing the waves, and extracting object-oriented metrics from ALSFW data. Moreover, extracted metrics can be used as input for generating either classification or regression models for forestry, ecology, and fire sciences applications. An example application of WoLFeX was carried out to test the influence of the relative radiometric correction and the acquisition scan angle (1) on the ALSFW metric return waveform energy (RWE) values, and (2) on the estimation of three forest fuel variables (CFL: canopy fuel load, CH: canopy height, and CBH: canopy base height). Results show that radiometric differences in RWE values computed from different scan angle intervals (0°–5° and 15°–20°) were reduced, but not removed, when the relative radiometric correction was applied. Additionally, the estimation of height variables (i.e., CH and CBH) was not strongly influenced by the relative radiometric correction, while the model obtained for CFL improved from R2 = 0.62 up to R2 = 0.79 after applying the correction. These results show the significance of the relative radiometric correction for reducing radiometric differences measured from different scan angles and for modelling some stand-level forest fuel variables. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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33 pages, 4867 KiB  
Article
Sensitivity Analysis of the DART Model for Forest Mensuration with Airborne Laser Scanning
by Osian Roberts, Pete Bunting, Andy Hardy and Daniel McInerney
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(2), 247; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12020247 - 10 Jan 2020
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 4166
Abstract
Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) measurements are increasingly vital in forest management and national forest inventories. Despite the growing reliance on ALS data, comparatively little research has examined the sensitivity of ALS measurements to varying survey conditions over commercially important forests. This study investigated: [...] Read more.
Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) measurements are increasingly vital in forest management and national forest inventories. Despite the growing reliance on ALS data, comparatively little research has examined the sensitivity of ALS measurements to varying survey conditions over commercially important forests. This study investigated: (i) how accurately the Discrete Anisotropic Radiative Transfer (DART) model was able to replicate small-footprint ALS measurements collected over Irish conifer plantations, and (ii) how survey characteristics influenced the precision of discrete-return metrics. A variance-based global sensitivity analysis demonstrated that discrete-return height distributions were accurately and consistently simulated across 100 forest inventory plots with few perturbations induced by varying acquisition parameters or ground topography. In contrast, discrete return density, canopy cover and the proportion of multiple returns were sensitive to fluctuations in sensor altitude, scanning angle, pulse repetition frequency and pulse duration. Our findings corroborate previous studies indicating that discrete-return heights are robust to varying acquisition parameters and may be reliable predictors for the indirect retrieval of forest inventory measurements. However, canopy cover and density metrics are only comparable for ALS data collected under similar acquisition conditions, precluding their universal use across different ALS surveys. Our study demonstrates that DART is a robust model for simulating discrete-return measurements over structurally complex forests; however, the replication of foliage morphology, density and orientation are important considerations for radiative transfer simulations using synthetic trees with explicitly defined crown architectures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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18 pages, 6109 KiB  
Article
Feasibility of Burned Area Mapping Based on ICESAT−2 Photon Counting Data
by Meng Liu, Sorin Popescu and Lonesome Malambo
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(1), 24; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12010024 - 19 Dec 2019
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 5202
Abstract
Accurately mapping burned areas is crucial for the analysis of carbon emissions and wildfire risk as well as understanding the effects of climate change on forest structure. Burned areas have predominantly been mapped using optical remote sensing images. However, the structural changes due [...] Read more.
Accurately mapping burned areas is crucial for the analysis of carbon emissions and wildfire risk as well as understanding the effects of climate change on forest structure. Burned areas have predominantly been mapped using optical remote sensing images. However, the structural changes due to fire also offer opportunities for mapping burned areas using three-dimensional (3D) datasets such as Light detection and ranging (LiDAR). This study focuses on the feasibility of using photon counting LiDAR data from National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat−2) mission to differentiate vegetation structure in burned and unburned areas and ultimately classify burned areas along mapped ground tracks. The ICESat−2 mission (launched in September 2018) provides datasets such as geolocated photon data (ATL03), which comprises precise latitude, longitude and elevation of each point where a photon interacts with land surface, and derivative products such as the Land Water Vegetation Elevation product (ATL08), which comprises estimated terrain and canopy height information. For analysis, 24 metrics such as the average, median and standard deviation of canopy height were derived from ATL08 data over forests burned by recent fires in 2018 in northern California and western New Mexico. A reference burn map was derived from Sentinel−2 images based on the differenced Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) index. A landcover map based on Sentinel−2 images was employed to remove non-forest classes. Landsat 8 based dNBR image and landcover map were also used for comparison. Next, ICESat−2 data of forest samples were classified into burned and unburned ATL08 100-m segments by both Random Forest classification and logistic regression. Both Sentinel−2 derived and Landsat 8 derived ATL08 samples got high classification accuracy, 83% versus 76%. Moreover, the resulting classification accuracy by Random Forest and logistic regression reached 83% and 74%, respectively. Among the 24 ICESat−2 metrics, apparent surface reflectance and the number of canopy photons were the most important. Furthermore, burn severity of each ATL08 segment was also estimated with Random Forest regression. R2 of predicted burn severity to observed dNBR is 0.61 with significant linear relationship and moderate correlation (r = 0.78). Overall, the reasonably high accuracies achieved in this study demonstrate the feasibility of employing ICESat−2 data in burned forest classification, opening avenues for improved estimation of burned biomass and carbon emissions from a 3D perspective. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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26 pages, 16571 KiB  
Article
Modelling Three-Dimensional Spatiotemporal Distributions of Forest Photosynthetically Active Radiation Using UAV-Based Lidar Data
by Kuo Zeng, Guang Zheng, Lixia Ma, Weimin Ju and Yong Pang
Remote Sens. 2019, 11(23), 2806; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs11232806 - 27 Nov 2019
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3527
Abstract
The three dimensional (3-D) spatiotemporal variations of forest photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) dictate the exchange rates of matter and energy in the carbon and water cycle processes between the plant-soil system and the atmosphere. It is still challenging to explicitly simulate spatial PAR [...] Read more.
The three dimensional (3-D) spatiotemporal variations of forest photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) dictate the exchange rates of matter and energy in the carbon and water cycle processes between the plant-soil system and the atmosphere. It is still challenging to explicitly simulate spatial PAR values at any specific position within or under a discontinuous forest canopy. In this study, we propose a novel lidar-based approach to estimate both direct and diffuse forest PAR components from a 3-D perspective. An improved path length-based direct PAR estimation method was developed by incorporating the point density along a light transmission path, and we also obtained the diffuse PAR components using a point-based sky view analysis by assuming the anisotropic sky diffuse distribution. We compared the total PAR modelled using three light path length-based parameters with reference data measured by radiometers on a five-minute time scale during a daily solar course. Our results show that, in a discontinuous forest canopy, the effective path length is a feasible and powerful (R2 = 0.92, p < 0.01) parameter to capture the spatiotemporal variations of total PAR along a light transmission path with a mean bias of −53.04 μmol·m−2·s−1(−6.8%). Furthermore, incorporating point density and spatial distribution factors will further improve the final estimation accuracy (R2 = 0.97, p < 0.01). In the meantime, diffuse PAR tends to be overestimated by 17% at noon and underestimated by about 10% at sunrise and sunset periods by assuming the isotropic sky diffuse distribution. The proposed lidar-based 3-D PAR model will provide a solid foundation to various process-based eco-hydrological models for simulating plant physiological processes such as photosynthesis and evapotranspiration, intra-species competition and succession, and snowmelt dynamics purposes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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18 pages, 9432 KiB  
Article
Prediction of Competition Indices in a Norway Spruce and Silver Fir-Dominated Forest Using Lidar Data
by Soraya Versace, Damiano Gianelle, Lorenzo Frizzera, Roberto Tognetti, Vittorio Garfì and Michele Dalponte
Remote Sens. 2019, 11(23), 2734; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs11232734 - 21 Nov 2019
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 3161
Abstract
Competitive interactions are important predictors of tree growth. Spatial and temporal changes in resource availability, and variation in species and spatial patterning of trees alter competitive interactions, thus affecting tree growth and, hence, biomass. Competition indices are used to quantify the level of [...] Read more.
Competitive interactions are important predictors of tree growth. Spatial and temporal changes in resource availability, and variation in species and spatial patterning of trees alter competitive interactions, thus affecting tree growth and, hence, biomass. Competition indices are used to quantify the level of competition among trees. As these indices are normally computed only over small areas, where field measurements are done, it would be useful to have a tool to predict them over large areas. On this regard, remote sensing, and in particular light detection and ranging (lidar) data, could be the perfect tool. The objective of this study was to use lidar metrics to predict competition (on the basis of distance-dependent competition indices) of individual trees and to relate them with tree aboveground biomass (AGB). The selected study area was a mountain forest area located in the Italian Alps. The analyses focused on the two dominant species of the area: Silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst). The results showed that lidar metrics could be used to predict competition indices of individual trees (R2 above 0.66). Moreover, AGB decreased as competition increased, suggesting that variations in the availability of resources in the soil, and the ability of plants to withstand competition for light may influence the partitioning of biomass. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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17 pages, 7537 KiB  
Article
Constructing a Finer-Resolution Forest Height in China Using ICESat/GLAS, Landsat and ALOS PALSAR Data and Height Patterns of Natural Forests and Plantations
by Huabing Huang, Caixia Liu and Xiaoyi Wang
Remote Sens. 2019, 11(15), 1740; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs11151740 - 24 Jul 2019
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3384
Abstract
Monitoring forest height is crucial to determine the structure and biodiversity of forest ecosystems. However, detailed spatial patterns of forest height from 30 m resolution remotely sensed data are currently unavailable. In this study, we present a new method for mapping forest height [...] Read more.
Monitoring forest height is crucial to determine the structure and biodiversity of forest ecosystems. However, detailed spatial patterns of forest height from 30 m resolution remotely sensed data are currently unavailable. In this study, we present a new method for mapping forest height by combining spaceborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) with imagery from multiple remote sensing sources, including the Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper (TM), the Phased Array L-band Synthetic Aperture Radars (PALSAR), and topographic data. The nationwide forest heights agree well with results obtained from 525 independent forest height field measurements, yielding correlation coefficient, root mean square error (RMSE), and mean absolute error (MAE) values of 0.92, 4.31 m, and 3.87 m, respectively. Forest heights derived from remotely sensed data range from 1.41 m to 38.94 m, with an average forest height of 16.08 ± 3.34 m. Mean forest heights differ only slightly among different forest types. In natural forests, conifer forests have the greatest mean forest heights, whereas in plantations, bamboo forests have the greatest mean forest heights. Important predictors for modeling forest height using the random forest regression tree method include slope, surface reflectance of red bands and HV backscatter. The uncertainty caused by the uneven distribution of Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) footprints is estimated to be 0.64 m. After integrating PALSAR data into the model, the uncertainty associated with forest height estimation was reduced by 4.58%. Our finer-resolution forest height could serve as a benchmark to estimate forest carbon storage and would greatly contribute to better understanding the roles of ecological engineering projects in China. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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25 pages, 7371 KiB  
Article
Integration of National Forest Inventory and Nationwide Airborne Laser Scanning Data to Improve Forest Yield Predictions in North-Western Spain
by Alís Novo-Fernández, Marcos Barrio-Anta, Carmen Recondo, Asunción Cámara-Obregón and Carlos A. López-Sánchez
Remote Sens. 2019, 11(14), 1693; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs11141693 - 17 Jul 2019
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4650
Abstract
The prediction of growing stock volume is one of the commonest applications of remote sensing to support the sustainable management of forest ecosystems. In this study, we used data from the 4th Spanish National Forest Inventory (SNFI-4) and from the 1st nationwide Airborne [...] Read more.
The prediction of growing stock volume is one of the commonest applications of remote sensing to support the sustainable management of forest ecosystems. In this study, we used data from the 4th Spanish National Forest Inventory (SNFI-4) and from the 1st nationwide Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) survey to develop predictive yield models for the three major commercial tree forest species (Eucalyptus globulus, Pinus pinaster and Pinus radiata) grown in north-western Spain. Integration of both types of data required prior harmonization because of differences in timing of data acquisition and difficulties in accurately geolocating the SNFI plots. The harmonised data from 477 E. globulus, 760 P. pinaster and 191 P. radiata plots were used to develop predictive models for total over bark volume, mean volume increment and total aboveground biomass by relating SNFI stand variables to metrics derived from the ALS data. The multiple linear regression methods and several machine learning techniques (k-nearest neighbour, random trees, random forest and the ensemble method) were compared. The study findings confirmed that multiple linear regression is outperformed by machine learning techniques. More specifically, the findings suggest that the random forest and the ensemble method slightly outperform the other techniques. The resulting stand level relative RMSEs for predicting total over bark volume, annual increase in total volume and total aboveground biomass ranged from 30.8–38.3%, 34.2–41.9% and 31.7–38.3% respectively. Although the predictions can be considered accurate, more precise geolocation of the SNFI plots and coincide temporarily with the ALS data would have enabled use of a much larger and robust field database to improve the overall accuracy of estimation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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13 pages, 3289 KiB  
Article
Canopy Height Layering Biomass Estimation Model (CHL-BEM) with Full-Waveform LiDAR
by Jinyan Tian, Le Wang, Xiaojuan Li, Dameng Yin, Huili Gong, Sheng Nie, Chen Shi, Ruofei Zhong, Xiaomeng Liu and Ronglong Xu
Remote Sens. 2019, 11(12), 1446; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs11121446 - 18 Jun 2019
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3544
Abstract
Forest biomass is an important descriptor for studying carbon storage, carbon cycles, and global change science. The full-waveform spaceborne Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) provides great possibilities for large-scale and long-term biomass estimation. To the best of our [...] Read more.
Forest biomass is an important descriptor for studying carbon storage, carbon cycles, and global change science. The full-waveform spaceborne Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) provides great possibilities for large-scale and long-term biomass estimation. To the best of our knowledge, most of the existing research has utilized average tree height (or height metrics) within a GLAS footprint as the key parameter for biomass estimation. However, the vertical distribution of tree height is usually not as homogeneous as we would expect within such a large footprint of more than 2000 m2, which would limit the biomass estimation accuracy vastly. Therefore, we aim to develop a novel canopy height layering biomass estimation model (CHL-BEM) with GLAS data in this study. First, all the trees with similar height were regarded as one canopy layer within each GLAS footprint. Second, the canopy height and canopy cover of each layer were derived from GLAS waveform parameters. These parameters were extracted using a waveform decomposition algorithm (refined Levenberg–Marquardt—RLM), which assumed that each decomposed vegetation signal corresponded to a particular canopy height layer. Third, the biomass estimation model (CHL-BEM) was established by using the canopy height and canopy cover of each height layer. Finally, the CHL-BEM was compared with two typical biomass estimation models of GLAS in the study site located in Ejina, China, where the dominant species was Populus euphratica. The results showed that the CHL-BEM presented good agreement with the field measurement biomass (R2 = 0.741, RMSE = 0.487, %RMSE = 24.192) and achieved a significantly higher accuracy than the other two models. As a whole, we expect our method to advance all the full-waveform LiDAR development and applications, e.g., the newly launched Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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10 pages, 2853 KiB  
Technical Note
Highly Local Model Calibration with a New GEDI LiDAR Asset on Google Earth Engine Reduces Landsat Forest Height Signal Saturation
by Sean P. Healey, Zhiqiang Yang, Noel Gorelick and Simon Ilyushchenko
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(17), 2840; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs12172840 - 01 Sep 2020
Cited by 51 | Viewed by 10975
Abstract
While Landsat has proved to be effective for monitoring many elements of forest condition and change, the platform has well-documented limitations in measuring forest structure, the vertical distribution of the canopy. This is important because structure determines several key ecosystem functions, including: carbon [...] Read more.
While Landsat has proved to be effective for monitoring many elements of forest condition and change, the platform has well-documented limitations in measuring forest structure, the vertical distribution of the canopy. This is important because structure determines several key ecosystem functions, including: carbon storage; habitat suitability; and timber volume. Canopy structure is directly measured by LiDAR, and it should be possible to train Landsat structure models at a highly local scale with the dense, global sample of full waveform LiDAR observations collected by NASA’s Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI). Local models are expected to perform better because: (a) such models may take advantage of localized correlations between structure and canopy surface reflectance; and (b) to the extent that models revert to the mean of the calibration data due to a lack of discrimination, local models will revert to a more representative mean. We tested Landsat-based relative height predictions using a new GEDI asset on Google Earth Engine, described here. Mean prediction error declined by 23% and important prediction biases at the extremes of the range of canopy height dropped as model calibration became more local, minimizing forest structure signal saturation commonly associated with Landsat and other passive optical sensors. Our results suggest that Landsat-based maps of structural variables such as height and biomass may substantially benefit from the kind of local calibration that GEDI’s dense sample of LiDAR data supports. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lidar Remote Sensing of Forest Structure, Biomass and Dynamics)
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