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Feature Paper Special Issue on Forest Remote Sensing

A topical collection in Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292). This collection belongs to the section "Forest Remote Sensing".

Viewed by 52304

Editors

Institute of Forest Resource Information Techniques, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China
Interests: forest resource remote sensing; radar forest remote sensing; LiDAR forest remote sensing
Research Institute of Forest Resources Information Technique, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China
Interests: forest resource monitoring using remote sensing; radar forest remote sensing
College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, China
Interests: forest resource monitoring; forest phenotyping; biodiversity; LiDAR; UAV; satellite images
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Topical Collection Information

Dear Colleagues,

Forest ecosystems can be markedly complicated in their vertical structure and rough topography under the forest canopy, as well as commonly being sensed as mixed pixels from air/space-borne remote sensing systems. The complexity of forests has made even advanced remote sensing techniques unsuitable for operational forest applications. Although some missions such as BIOMASS (P-band SAR), Tandem-L, and NISAR are planned to be launched mainly for global forest resource monitoring, we still lack novel satellite systems able to monitor forest resources with high temporal and spatial resolutions. Current remote sensing data pre-processing techniques are already of a very high level. However, there exist few well-developed approaches for radiometric terrain correction of optical, PolSAR, and InSAR data with aim to map forest quality parameters accurately in hilly areas. Collecting forest plot data manually is labor intensive, but the efficiency and accuracy of it control the performance of design-based, model-based, and model-assisted forest inventories or monitoring activities. However, until now, the techniques for single tree parameter measurement cannot meet the plot survey needs of forest inventories and remote sensing modeling. Innovative ground/drone-based instruments and automatic tree information extraction approaches should be developed in the future. With the greater availability of temporal series satellite data, high-resolution airborne/UAV sensor data, active and passive remote sensing data, and advanced machine learning techniques, models and methods for extracting forest cover and biophysical information at both high spatial and temporal resolutions remotely have advanced rapidly. However, models for the synergistic inversion of forest parameters with multi-source remote sensing data, and for uncertainty assessment for synergistic inversion using multi-source and multi-scale data, are still being developed.

In the face of the above-mentioned challenges and issues for the key process of forest remote sensing, this Special Issue hopes to improve our understanding of current remote sensing models, techniques, and methods to map forest cover and quantitative parameters. This Special Issue will showcase new insights, novel developments, current challenges, the latest discoveries, recent advances, and future perspectives in the field of forest remote sensing. Submissions covering the following (non-exhaustive) topics in the scope of forest remote sensing are very welcome:

  • New remote sensing satellite mission concepts for forest applications;
  • Radiometric topography correction methods for forest applications;
  • Single tree measurement techniques, new equipment and its validation and calibration;
  • Forest land cover, forest type, and tree species classification;
  • Target detection for typical forest types;
  • The synergistic inversion of forest parameters from active and passive data;
  • Uncertainty assessment for synergistic inversion using multi-source and multi-scale data;
  • The validation of remote sensing-derived forest information for heterogeneous surfaces;
  • Review articles covering one or more of these topics.

Please contact Ms. Nancy Yang ([email protected]), the section managing editor, if you have any questions.

Prof. Dr. Zengyuan Li
Prof. Dr. Erxue Chen
Prof. Dr. Lin Cao
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • forest
  • tree
  • volume density
  • UAV
  • classification
  • change detection
  • inversion model
  • estimation
  • scale transfer
  • uncertainties

Published Papers (22 papers)

2023

Jump to: 2022

26 pages, 58229 KiB  
Article
Classification of Coniferous and Broad-Leaf Forests in China Based on High-Resolution Imagery and Local Samples in Google Earth Engine
by Xiaoguang Yuan, Yiduo Liang, Wei Feng, Junhang Li, Hongtao Ren, Shuo Han and Mengqi Liu
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(20), 5026; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs15205026 - 19 Oct 2023
Viewed by 920
Abstract
As one of the world’s major forestry countries, accurate forest-type maps in China are of great importance for the monitoring and management of forestry resources. Classifying and mapping forest types on a large scale across the country is challenging due to the complex [...] Read more.
As one of the world’s major forestry countries, accurate forest-type maps in China are of great importance for the monitoring and management of forestry resources. Classifying and mapping forest types on a large scale across the country is challenging due to the complex composition of forest types, the similarity of spectral features among forest types, and the need to collect and process large amounts of data. In this study, we generated a medium-resolution (30 m) forest classification map of China using multi-source remote sensing images and local samples. A mapping framework based on Google Earth Engine (GEE) was constructed mainly using the spectral, textural, and structural features of Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 remote sensing images, while local acquisition data were utilized as the mapping channel for training. The proposed method includes the following steps. First, local data processing is performed to obtain training and validation samples. Second, Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 data are processed to improve the classification accuracy by using the enhanced vegetation index (EVI) and the red-edge position index (REPI) computed based on the S2A data. Third, to improve classification efficiency, useless bands are removed and important bands are retained through feature importance analysis. Finally, random forest (RF) is used as a classifier to train the above features, and the classification results are used for mapping and accuracy evaluation. The validation of the samples showed an accuracy of 82.37% and a Kappa value of 0.72. The results showed that the total forest area in China is 21,662,261.17 km2, of which 1,127,294.42 km2 of coniferous forests account for 52% of the total area, 981,690.98 km2 of broad-leaf forests account for 45.3 % of the total area, and 57,275.77 km2 of mixed coniferous and broad-leaf forests account for 2.6% of the total area. Upon further evaluation, we found that textural and structural features play a greater role in classification compared to spectral features. Our study shows that combining multi-source high-resolution remote sensing imagery with locally collected samples can produce forest maps for large areas. Our maps can accurately reflect the distribution of forests in China, which is conducive to forest conservation and development. Full article
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25 pages, 25613 KiB  
Article
Orthomosaicking Thermal Drone Images of Forests via Simultaneously Acquired RGB Images
by Rudraksh Kapil, Guillermo Castilla, Seyed Mojtaba Marvasti-Zadeh, Devin Goodsman, Nadir Erbilgin and Nilanjan Ray
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(10), 2653; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs15102653 - 19 May 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3107
Abstract
Operational forest monitoring often requires fine-detail information in the form of an orthomosaic, created by stitching overlapping nadir images captured by aerial platforms such as drones. RGB drone sensors are commonly used for low-cost, high-resolution imaging that is conducive to effective orthomosaicking, but [...] Read more.
Operational forest monitoring often requires fine-detail information in the form of an orthomosaic, created by stitching overlapping nadir images captured by aerial platforms such as drones. RGB drone sensors are commonly used for low-cost, high-resolution imaging that is conducive to effective orthomosaicking, but only capture visible light. Thermal sensors, on the other hand, capture long-wave infrared radiation, which is useful for early pest detection among other applications. However, these lower-resolution images suffer from reduced contrast and lack of descriptive features for successful orthomosaicking, leading to gaps or swirling artifacts in the orthomosaic. To tackle this, we propose a thermal orthomosaicking workflow that leverages simultaneously acquired RGB images. The latter are used for producing a surface mesh via structure from motion, while thermal images are only used to texture this mesh and yield a thermal orthomosaic. Prior to texturing, RGB-thermal image pairs are co-registered using an affine transformation derived from a machine learning technique. On average, the individual RGB and thermal images achieve a mutual information of 0.2787 after co-registration using our technique, compared to 0.0591 before co-registration, and 0.1934 using manual co-registration. We show that the thermal orthomosaic generated from our workflow (1) is of better quality than other existing methods, (2) is geometrically aligned with the RGB orthomosaic, (3) preserves radiometric information (i.e., surface temperatures) from the original thermal imagery, and (4) enables easy transfer of downstream tasks—such as tree crown detection from the RGB to the thermal orthomosaic. We also provide an open-source tool that implements our workflow to facilitate usage and further development. Full article
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29 pages, 2126 KiB  
Review
Climate-Change-Driven Droughts and Tree Mortality: Assessing the Potential of UAV-Derived Early Warning Metrics
by Ewane Basil Ewane, Midhun Mohan, Shaurya Bajaj, G. A. Pabodha Galgamuwa, Michael S. Watt, Pavithra Pitumpe Arachchige, Andrew T. Hudak, Gabriella Richardson, Nivedhitha Ajithkumar, Shruthi Srinivasan, Ana Paula Dalla Corte, Daniel J. Johnson, Eben North Broadbent, Sergio de-Miguel, Margherita Bruscolini, Derek J. N. Young, Shahid Shafai, Meshal M. Abdullah, Wan Shafrina Wan Mohd Jaafar, Willie Doaemo, Carlos Alberto Silva and Adrian Cardiladd Show full author list remove Hide full author list
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(10), 2627; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs15102627 - 18 May 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3090
Abstract
Protecting and enhancing forest carbon sinks is considered a natural solution for mitigating climate change. However, the increasing frequency, intensity, and duration of droughts due to climate change can threaten the stability and growth of existing forest carbon sinks. Extreme droughts weaken plant [...] Read more.
Protecting and enhancing forest carbon sinks is considered a natural solution for mitigating climate change. However, the increasing frequency, intensity, and duration of droughts due to climate change can threaten the stability and growth of existing forest carbon sinks. Extreme droughts weaken plant hydraulic systems, can lead to tree mortality events, and may reduce forest diversity, making forests more vulnerable to subsequent forest disturbances, such as forest fires or pest infestations. Although early warning metrics (EWMs) derived using satellite remote sensing data are now being tested for predicting post-drought plant physiological stress and mortality, applications of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are yet to be explored extensively. Herein, we provide twenty-four prospective approaches classified into five categories: (i) physiological complexities, (ii) site-specific and confounding (abiotic) factors, (iii) interactions with biotic agents, (iv) forest carbon monitoring and optimization, and (v) technological and infrastructural developments, for adoption, future operationalization, and upscaling of UAV-based frameworks for EWM applications. These UAV considerations are paramount as they hold the potential to bridge the gap between field inventory and satellite remote sensing for assessing forest characteristics and their responses to drought conditions, identifying and prioritizing conservation needs of vulnerable and/or high-carbon-efficient tree species for efficient allocation of resources, and optimizing forest carbon management with climate change adaptation and mitigation practices in a timely and cost-effective manner. Full article
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22 pages, 9278 KiB  
Article
Interpretation and Mapping Tree Crown Diameter Using Spatial Heterogeneity in Relation to the Radiative Transfer Model Extracted from GF-2 Images in Planted Boreal Forest Ecosystems
by Zhaohua Liu, Jiangping Long, Hui Lin, Kai Du, Xiaodong Xu, Hao Liu, Peisong Yang, Tingchen Zhang and Zilin Ye
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(7), 1806; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs15071806 - 28 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1328
Abstract
Tree crown diameter (CD) values, relating to the rate of material exchange between the forest and the atmosphere, can be used to evaluate forest biomass and carbon stock. To map tree CD values using meter-level optical remote sensing images, we propose a novel [...] Read more.
Tree crown diameter (CD) values, relating to the rate of material exchange between the forest and the atmosphere, can be used to evaluate forest biomass and carbon stock. To map tree CD values using meter-level optical remote sensing images, we propose a novel method that interprets the relationships between the spectral reflectance of pixels and the CD. The approach employs the spectral reflectance of pixels in the tree crown to express the diversity of inclination angles of leaves based on the radiative transfer model and the spatial heterogeneity of these pixels. Then, simulated and acquired GF-2 images are applied to verify the relationships between spatial heterogeneity and the tree CD. Meanwhile, filter-based and object-based methods are also employed to extract three types of variables (spectral features, texture features, and spatial heterogeneity). Finally, the tree CD values are mapped by four models (random forest (RF), K-nearest neighbor (K-NN), support vector machine (SVM), and multiple linear regression (MLR)), using three single types of variables and combinations of variables with different strategies. The results imply that the spatial heterogeneity of spectral reflectance is significantly positively correlated with tree CD values and is more sensitive to tree CD values than traditional spectral features and textural features. Furthermore, the ability of spatial heterogeneity to map tree CD values is significantly higher than traditional variable sets after obtaining stable features with appropriate filter window sizes. The results also demonstrate that the accuracy of mapped tree CD values is significantly improved using combined variable sets with different feature extraction methods. For example, in our experiments, the R2 and rRMSE values of the optimal results ranged from 0.60 to 0.66, and from 15.76% to 16.68%, respectively. It is confirmed that spatial heterogeneity with high sensitivity can effectively map tree CD values, and the accuracy of mapping tree CD values can be greatly improved using a combination of spectral features extracted by an object-based method and spatial heterogeneity extracted by a filter-based method. Full article
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19 pages, 28491 KiB  
Article
A New Strategy for Individual Tree Detection and Segmentation from Leaf-on and Leaf-off UAV-LiDAR Point Clouds Based on Automatic Detection of Seed Points
by Yihan Pu, Dandan Xu, Haobin Wang, Xin Li and Xia Xu
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(6), 1619; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs15061619 - 16 Mar 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2990
Abstract
Accurate and efficient estimation of forest volume or biomass is critical for carbon cycles, forest management, and the timber industry. Individual tree detection and segmentation (ITDS) is the first and key step to ensure the accurate extraction of detailed forest structure parameters from [...] Read more.
Accurate and efficient estimation of forest volume or biomass is critical for carbon cycles, forest management, and the timber industry. Individual tree detection and segmentation (ITDS) is the first and key step to ensure the accurate extraction of detailed forest structure parameters from LiDAR (light detection and ranging). However, ITDS is still a challenge to achieve using UAV-LiDAR (LiDAR from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) in broadleaved forests due to the irregular and overlapped canopies. We developed an efficient and accurate ITDS framework for broadleaved forests based on UAV-LiDAR point clouds. It involves ITD (individual tree detection) from point clouds taken during the leaf-off season, initial ITS (individual tree segmentation) based on the seed points from ITD, and improvement of initial ITS through a refining process. The results indicate that this new proposed strategy efficiently provides accurate results for ITDS. We show the following: (1) point-cloud-based ITD methods, especially the Mean Shift, perform better for seed point selection than CHM-based (Canopy Height Model) ITD methods on the point clouds from leaf-off seasons; (2) seed points significantly improved the accuracy and efficiency of ITS algorithms; (3) the refining process using DBSCAN (density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise) and kNN (k-Nearest Neighbor classifier) classification significantly reduced edge errors in ITS results. Our study developed a novel ITDS strategy for UAV-LiDAR point clouds that demonstrates proficiency in dense deciduous broadleaved forests, and this proposed ITDS framework could be applied to single-phase point clouds instead of the multi-temporal LiDAR data in the future if the point clouds have detailed tree trunk points. Full article
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19 pages, 4764 KiB  
Article
Mapping Forest Growing Stem Volume Using Novel Feature Evaluation Criteria Based on Spectral Saturation in Planted Chinese Fir Forest
by Hui Lin, Wanguo Zhao, Jiangping Long, Zhaohua Liu, Peisong Yang, Tingchen Zhang, Zilin Ye, Qingyang Wang and Hamid Reza Matinfar
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(2), 402; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs15020402 - 10 Jan 2023
Viewed by 1440
Abstract
Forest growing stem volume (GSV) is regarded as one of the most important parameters for the quality evaluation and dynamic monitoring of forest resources. The accuracy of mapping forest GSV is highly related to the employed models and involved remote sensing features, and [...] Read more.
Forest growing stem volume (GSV) is regarded as one of the most important parameters for the quality evaluation and dynamic monitoring of forest resources. The accuracy of mapping forest GSV is highly related to the employed models and involved remote sensing features, and the criteria of feature evaluation severely affect the performance of the employed models. However, due to the linear or nonlinear relationships between remote sensing features and GSV, widely used evaluation criteria inadequately express the complex sensitivity between forest GSV and spectral features, especially the saturation levels of features in a planted forest. In this study, novel feature evaluation criteria were constructed based on the Pearson correlations and optical saturation levels of the alternative remote sensing features extracted from two common optical remote sensing image sets (GF-1 and Sentinel-2). Initially, the spectral saturation level of each feature was quantified using the kriging spherical model and the quadratic model. Then, optimal feature sets were obtained with the proposed criteria and the linear stepwise regression model. Finally, four widely used machine learning models—support vector machine (SVM), multiple linear stepwise regression (MLR), random forest (RF) and K-neighborhood (KNN)—were employed to map forest GSV in a planted Chinese fir forest. The results showed that the proposed feature evaluation criteria could effectively improve the accuracy of estimating forest GSV and that the systematic distribution of errors between the predicted and ground measurements in the range of forest GSV was less than 300 m3/hm2. After using the proposed feature evaluation criteria, the highest accuracy of mapping GSV was obtained with the RF model for GF-1 images (R2 = 0.49, rRMSE = 28.67%) and the SVM model for Sentinel-2 images (R2 = 0.52, rRMSE = 26.65%), and the decreased rRMSE values ranged from 1.1 to 6.2 for GF-1 images (28.67% to 33.08%) and from 2.3 to 6.8 for Sentinel-2 images (26.85% to 33.28%). It was concluded that the sensitivity of the optimal feature set and the accuracy of the estimated GSV could be improved using the proposed evaluation criteria (less than 300 m3/hm2). However, these criteria were barely able to improve mapping accuracy for a forest with a high GSV (larger than 300 m3/hm2). Full article
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22 pages, 5056 KiB  
Article
Monitoring of Monthly Height Growth of Individual Trees in a Subtropical Mixed Plantation Using UAV Data
by Xu Tang, Haotian You, Yao Liu, Qixu You and Jianjun Chen
Remote Sens. 2023, 15(2), 326; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs15020326 - 05 Jan 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1718
Abstract
The assessment of changes in the height growth of trees can serve as an accurate basis for the simulation of various ecological processes. However, most studies conducted on changes in the height growth of trees are on an annual scale. This makes it [...] Read more.
The assessment of changes in the height growth of trees can serve as an accurate basis for the simulation of various ecological processes. However, most studies conducted on changes in the height growth of trees are on an annual scale. This makes it difficult to obtain basic data for correcting time differences in the height growth estimates of trees within a year. In this study, the digital elevation models (DEMs) were produced based on stereo images and light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data obtained by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Individual tree crowns were segmented by employing the watershed segmentation algorithm and the maximum value within each crown was extracted as the height of each tree. Subsequently, the height growth of each tree on a monthly-scale time series was extracted to simulate the time difference correction of regional tree height estimates within a year. This was used to verify the feasibility of the time difference correction method on a monthly scale. It is evident from the results that the DEM based on UAV stereo images was closely related to the DEM based on UAV LiDAR, with correlation coefficients of R2 = 0.96 and RMSE = 0.28 m. There was a close correlation between the tree height extracted from canopy height models (CHMs) based on UAV images and the measured tree height, with correlation coefficients of R2 = 0.99, and RMSE = 0.36 m. Regardless of the tree species, the total height growth in each month throughout the year was 46.53 cm. The most significant changes in the height growth of trees occurred in May (14.26 cm) and June (14.67 cm). In the case of the Liriodendron chinense tree species, the annual height growth was the highest (58.64 cm) while that of the Osmanthus fragrans tree species was the lowest (34.00 cm). By analyzing the height growth estimates of trees each month, it was concluded that there were significant differences among various tree species. In the case of the Liriodendron chinense tree species, the growth season occurred primarily from April to July. During this season, 56.92 cm of growth was recorded, which accounted for 97.08% of the annual growth. In the case of the Ficus concinna tree species, the tree height was in a state of growth during each month of the year. The changes in the height growth estimates of the tree were higher from May to August (44.24 cm of growth, accounting for 77.09% of the annual growth). After applying the time difference correction to the regional tree growth estimates, the extraction results of the changes in the height growth estimates of the tree (based on a monthly scale) were correlated with the height of the UAV image-derived tree. The correlation coefficients of R2 = 0.99 and RMSE = 0.26 m were obtained. The results demonstrate that changes in the height growth estimates on a monthly scale can be accurately determined by employing UAV stereo images. Furthermore, the results can provide basic data for the correction of the time differences in the growth of regional trees and further provide technical and methodological guidance for regional time difference correction of other forest structure parameters. Full article
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2022

Jump to: 2023

19 pages, 9458 KiB  
Article
Inundated Vegetation Mapping Using SAR Data: A Comparison of Polarization Configurations of UAVSAR L-Band and Sentinel C-Band
by Abdella Salem and Leila Hashemi-Beni
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(24), 6374; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14246374 - 16 Dec 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1854
Abstract
Flood events have become intense and more frequent due to heavy rainfall and hurricanes caused by global warming. Accurate floodwater extent maps are essential information sources for emergency management agencies and flood relief programs to direct their resources to the most affected areas. [...] Read more.
Flood events have become intense and more frequent due to heavy rainfall and hurricanes caused by global warming. Accurate floodwater extent maps are essential information sources for emergency management agencies and flood relief programs to direct their resources to the most affected areas. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data are superior to optical data for floodwater mapping, especially in vegetated areas and in forests that are adjacent to urban areas and critical infrastructures. Investigating floodwater mapping with various available SAR sensors and comparing their performance allows the identification of suitable SAR sensors that can be used to map inundated areas in different land covers, such as forests and vegetated areas. In this study, we investigated the performance of polarization configurations for flood boundary delineation in vegetated and open areas derived from Sentinel1b, C-band, and Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) L-band data collected during flood events resulting from Hurricane Florence in the eastern area of North Carolina. The datasets from the sensors for the flooding event collected on the same day and same study area were processed and classified for five landcover classes using a machine learning method—the Random Forest classification algorithm. We compared the classification results of linear, dual, and full polarizations of the SAR datasets. The L-band fully polarized data classification achieved the highest accuracy for flood mapping as the decomposition of fully polarized SAR data allows land cover features to be identified based on their scattering mechanisms. Full article
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27 pages, 6458 KiB  
Article
Comparison of Model-Assisted Endogenous Poststratification Methods for Estimation of Above-Ground Biomass Change in Oregon, USA
by Francisco Mauro, Vicente J. Monleon, Andrew N. Gray, Olaf Kuegler, Hailemariam Temesgen, Andrew T. Hudak, Patrick A. Fekety and Zhiqiang Yang
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(23), 6024; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14236024 - 28 Nov 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1494
Abstract
Quantifying above-ground biomass changes, ΔAGB, is key for understanding carbon dynamics. National Forest Inventories, NFIs, aims at providing precise estimates of ΔAGB relying on model-assisted estimators that incorporate auxiliary information to reduce uncertainty. Poststratification estimators, PS, are commonly used for [...] Read more.
Quantifying above-ground biomass changes, ΔAGB, is key for understanding carbon dynamics. National Forest Inventories, NFIs, aims at providing precise estimates of ΔAGB relying on model-assisted estimators that incorporate auxiliary information to reduce uncertainty. Poststratification estimators, PS, are commonly used for this task. Recently proposed endogenous poststratification, EPS, methods have the potential to improve the precision of PS estimates of ΔAGB. Using the state of Oregon, USA, as a testing area, we developed a formal comparison between three EPS methods, traditional PS estimators used in the region, and the Horvitz-Thompson, HT, estimator. Results showed that gains in performance with respect to the HT estimator were 9.71% to 19.22% larger for EPS than for PS. Furthermore, EPS methods easily accommodated a large number of auxiliary variables, and the inclusion of independent predictions of ΔAGB as an additional auxiliary variable resulted in further gains in performance. Full article
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19 pages, 4294 KiB  
Article
A Method for Forest Canopy Height Inversion Based on Machine Learning and Feature Mining Using UAVSAR
by Hongbin Luo, Cairong Yue, Fuming Xie, Bodong Zhu and Si Chen
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(22), 5849; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14225849 - 18 Nov 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1795
Abstract
The mapping of tropical rainforest forest structure parameters plays an important role in biodiversity and carbon stock estimation. The current mechanism models based on PolInSAR for forest height inversion (e.g., the RVoG model) are physical process models, and realistic conditions for model parameterization [...] Read more.
The mapping of tropical rainforest forest structure parameters plays an important role in biodiversity and carbon stock estimation. The current mechanism models based on PolInSAR for forest height inversion (e.g., the RVoG model) are physical process models, and realistic conditions for model parameterization are often difficult to establish for practical applications, resulting in large forest height estimation errors. As an alternative, machine learning approaches offer the benefit of model simplicity, but these tools provide limited capabilities for interpretation and generalization. To explore the forest height estimation method combining the mechanism model and the empirical model, we utilized UAVSAR multi-baseline PolInSAR L-band data from the AfriSAR project and propose a solution of a mechanism model combined with machine learning. In this paper, two mechanism models were used as controls, the RVoG three-phase method and the RVoG phase-coherence amplitude method. The vertical structure parameters of the forest obtained from the mechanism model were used as the independent variables of the machine learning model. Random forest (RF) and partial least squares (PLS) regression models were used to invert the forest canopy height. Results show that the inversion accuracy of the machine learning method, combined with the mechanism model, is significantly better than that of the single-mechanism model method. The most influential independent variables were penetration depth, volume coherence phase center height, coherence separation, and baseline selection. With the precondition that the cumulative contribution of the independent variables was greater than 90%, the number of independent variables in the two study areas was reduced from 19 to 4, and the accuracy of the RF-RVoG-DEP model was higher than that of the PLS-RVoG-DEP model. For the Lope test area, the R2 of the RVoG phase coherence amplitude method is 0.723, the RMSE is 8.583 m, and the model bias is −2.431 m; the R2 of the RVoG three-stage method is 0.775, the RMSE is 7.748, and the bias is 1.120 m, the R2 of the PLS-RVoG-DEP model is 0.850, the RMSE is 6.320 m, and the bias is 0.002 m; and the R2 of the RF-RVoG-DEP model is 0.900, the RMSE is 5.154 m, and the bias is −0.061 m. The results for the Pongara test area are consistent with the pattern for the Lope test area. The combined “fusion model” offers a substantial improvement in forest height estimation from the traditional mechanism modeling method. Full article
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10 pages, 2553 KiB  
Communication
Quantum Based Pseudo-Labelling for Hyperspectral Imagery: A Simple and Efficient Semi-Supervised Learning Method for Machine Learning Classifiers
by Riyaaz Uddien Shaik, Aiswarya Unni and Weiping Zeng
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(22), 5774; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14225774 - 16 Nov 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1724
Abstract
A quantum machine is a human-made device whose collective motion follows the laws of quantum mechanics. Quantum machine learning (QML) is machine learning for quantum computers. The availability of quantum processors has led to practical applications of QML algorithms in the remote sensing [...] Read more.
A quantum machine is a human-made device whose collective motion follows the laws of quantum mechanics. Quantum machine learning (QML) is machine learning for quantum computers. The availability of quantum processors has led to practical applications of QML algorithms in the remote sensing field. Quantum machines can learn from fewer data than non-quantum machines, but because of their low processing speed, quantum machines cannot be applied to an image that has hundreds of thousands of pixels. Researchers around the world are exploring applications for QML and in this work, it is applied for pseudo-labelling of samples. Here, a PRISMA (PRecursore IperSpettrale della Missione Applicativa) hyperspectral dataset is prepared by quantum-based pseudo-labelling and 11 different machine learning algorithms viz., support vector machine (SVM), K-nearest neighbour (KNN), random forest (RF), light gradient boosting machine (LGBM), XGBoost, support vector classifier (SVC) + decision tree (DT), RF + SVC, RF + DT, XGBoost + SVC, XGBoost + DT, and XGBoost + RF with this dataset are evaluated. An accuracy of 86% was obtained for the classification of pine trees using the hybrid XGBoost + decision tree technique. Full article
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21 pages, 5117 KiB  
Article
Tree Species Classification Using Ground-Based LiDAR Data by Various Point Cloud Deep Learning Methods
by Bingjie Liu, Huaguo Huang, Yong Su, Shuxin Chen, Zengyuan Li, Erxue Chen and Xin Tian
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(22), 5733; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14225733 - 13 Nov 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3348
Abstract
Tree species information is an important factor in forest resource surveys, and light detection and ranging (LiDAR), as a new technical tool for forest resource surveys, can quickly obtain the 3D structural information of trees. In particular, the rapid and accurate classification and [...] Read more.
Tree species information is an important factor in forest resource surveys, and light detection and ranging (LiDAR), as a new technical tool for forest resource surveys, can quickly obtain the 3D structural information of trees. In particular, the rapid and accurate classification and identification of tree species information from individual tree point clouds using deep learning methods is a new development direction for LiDAR technology in forest applications. In this study, mobile laser scanning (MLS) data collected in the field are first pre-processed to extract individual tree point clouds. Two downsampling methods, non-uniform grid and farthest point sampling, are combined to process the point cloud data, and the obtained sample data are more conducive to the deep learning model for extracting classification features. Finally, four different types of point cloud deep learning models, including pointwise multi-layer perceptron (MLP) (PointNet, PointNet++, PointMLP), convolution-based (PointConv), graph-based (DGCNN), and attention-based (PCT) models, are used to classify and identify the individual tree point clouds of eight tree species. The results show that the classification accuracy of all models (except for PointNet) exceeded 0.90, where the PointConv model achieved the highest classification accuracy for tree species classification. The streamlined PointMLP model can still achieve high classification accuracy, while the PCT model did not achieve good accuracy in the tree species classification experiment, likely due to the small sample size. We compare the training process and final classification accuracy of the different types of point cloud deep learning models in tree species classification experiments, further demonstrating the advantages of deep learning techniques in tree species recognition and providing experimental reference for related research and technological development. Full article
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19 pages, 5882 KiB  
Article
Mapping Forest Stock Volume Based on Growth Characteristics of Crown Using Multi-Temporal Landsat 8 OLI and ZY-3 Stereo Images in Planted Eucalyptus Forest
by Zhaohua Liu, Zilin Ye, Xiaodong Xu, Hui Lin, Tingchen Zhang and Jiangping Long
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(20), 5082; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14205082 - 11 Oct 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1646
Abstract
Labeled as a fast-growing tree species, eucalyptus has outstanding carbon sequestration capacity. Forest stock volume (FSV) is regarded as an important parameter for evaluating the quality of planted eucalyptus forests. However, it is an intractable problem to map FSV of planted eucalyptus forests [...] Read more.
Labeled as a fast-growing tree species, eucalyptus has outstanding carbon sequestration capacity. Forest stock volume (FSV) is regarded as an important parameter for evaluating the quality of planted eucalyptus forests. However, it is an intractable problem to map FSV of planted eucalyptus forests using optical images because of growth characteristics of the crown and low saturation levels. To improve the accuracy of FSV in planted eucalyptus forests, time series Landsat 8 OLI (LC8) images and ZY-3 stereo images were acquired in the study area. Additionally, then, three composite images were proposed using acquired Landsat 8 OLI images based on the size and shape of eucalyptus crowns, and several spectra variables were extracted from these composite images. Furthermore, corrected canopy height model (CCHM) was also extracted from ZY-3 stereo images. Meanwhile, four models (random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM), K-nearest neighbor (KNN), and multiple linear regression (MLR)) were used to estimate the FSV with various variable sets using the importance of the alternative variables ranked by RF. The results show that the sensitivity between proposed spectral variables and FSV is significantly improved using proposed composed images based on the growth characteristics of the crown, especially for young eucalyptus forests. After adding CCHM and stand age to the optimal variable set, the average relative root mean square error (rRMSE) of estimated FSV decreased from 41.01% to 29.94% for single LC8 images and from 32.64% to 26.47% for proposed composite LC8 images, respectively. After using the variable set extracted from composite LC8 images, the number of samples with overestimated FSV was significantly decreased for the young forest. Furthermore, forest height plays an important role in improving the accuracy of mapping FSV, whether young or mature eucalyptus forest. It was also proved that composite images related to crown close and CCHM have great potential to delay the saturation phenomenon for mapping FSV in planted eucalyptus forest. Full article
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18 pages, 4655 KiB  
Article
Biomass Calculations of Individual Trees Based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Multispectral Imagery and Laser Scanning Combined with Terrestrial Laser Scanning in Complex Stands
by Xugang Lian, Hailang Zhang, Wu Xiao, Yunping Lei, Linlin Ge, Kai Qin, Yuanwen He, Quanyi Dong, Longfei Li, Yu Han, Haodi Fan, Yu Li, Lifan Shi and Jiang Chang
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(19), 4715; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14194715 - 21 Sep 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2460
Abstract
Biomass is important in monitoring global carbon storage and the carbon cycle, which quickly and accurately estimates forest biomass. Precision forestry and forest modeling place high requirements on obtaining the individual parameters of various tree species in complex stands, and studies have included [...] Read more.
Biomass is important in monitoring global carbon storage and the carbon cycle, which quickly and accurately estimates forest biomass. Precision forestry and forest modeling place high requirements on obtaining the individual parameters of various tree species in complex stands, and studies have included both the overall stand and individual trees. Most of the existing literature focuses on calculating the individual tree species’ biomass in a single stand, and there is little research on calculating the individual tree biomass in complex stands. This paper calculates the individual tree biomass of various tree species in complex stands by combining multispectral and light detection and ranging (LIDAR) data. The main research steps are as follows. First, tree species are classified through multispectral data combined with field investigations. Second, multispectral classification data are combined with LIDAR point cloud data to classify point cloud tree species. Finally, the divided point cloud tree species are used to compare the diameter at breast height (DBH) and height of each tree species to calculate the individual tree biomass and classify the overall stand and individual measurements. The results show that under suitable conditions, it is feasible to identify tree species through multispectral classification and calculate the individual tree biomass of each species in conjunction with point-cloud data. The overall accuracy of identifying tree species in multispectral classification is 52%. Comparing the DBH of the classified tree species after terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and unmanned aerial vehicle laser scanning (UAV-LS) to give UAV-LS+TLS, the concordance correlation coefficient (CCC) is 0.87 and the root-mean-square error (RMSE) is 10.45. The CCC and RMSE are 0.92 and 1.41 compared with the tree height after UAV-LS and UAV-LS+TLS. Full article
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23 pages, 14962 KiB  
Article
Spatial–Temporal Trends in and Attribution Analysis of Vegetation Change in the Yellow River Basin, China
by Shengqi Jian, Qiankun Zhang and Huiliang Wang
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(18), 4607; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14184607 - 15 Sep 2022
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 1855
Abstract
In 1999, the Yellow River Basin (YRB) launched the Grain for Green Program (GGP), which has had a huge impact on the Yellow River Basin vegetation. Research regarding the causes of vegetation changes can provide beneficial information for the management and construction of [...] Read more.
In 1999, the Yellow River Basin (YRB) launched the Grain for Green Program (GGP), which has had a huge impact on the Yellow River Basin vegetation. Research regarding the causes of vegetation changes can provide beneficial information for the management and construction of the ecological environment in the Yellow River Basin. In this study, after reconstructing the relationship between vegetation and climate change under natural conditions, topographic factors were introduced to understand vegetation change in the Yellow River Basin before and after the initiation of the Grain for Green Program, and the contribution rates of the driving factors of change were analyzed. Results show that human activities have had a great impact on the vegetation cover in the Yellow River Basin. We found that after the start of the Grain for Green Program, the vegetation recovery rate was more than six times (slope = 0.0067) that before its start (slope = 0.0011); high NDVI levels moved to lower altitudes, while low NDVI levels moved to high altitudes; and most vegetation types turned to gentle slopes. Human activities and climate change are the dominant factors influencing vegetation coverage, and the contribution rate of human activities had reached 59.3% after 2000, with a tendency to gradually dominate. Full article
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19 pages, 5146 KiB  
Article
Optimization of Samples for Remote Sensing Estimation of Forest Aboveground Biomass at the Regional Scale
by Qingtai Shu, Lei Xi, Keren Wang, Fuming Xie, Yong Pang and Hanyue Song
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(17), 4187; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14174187 - 25 Aug 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1598
Abstract
Accurately estimating forest aboveground biomass (AGB) based on remote sensing (RS) images at the regional level is challenging due to the uncertainty of the modeling sample size. In this study, a new optimizing method for the samples was suggested by integrating variance function [...] Read more.
Accurately estimating forest aboveground biomass (AGB) based on remote sensing (RS) images at the regional level is challenging due to the uncertainty of the modeling sample size. In this study, a new optimizing method for the samples was suggested by integrating variance function in Geostatistics and value coefficient (VC) in Value Engineering. In order to evaluate the influence of the sample size for RS models, the random forest regression (RFR), nearest neighbor (K-NN) method, and partial least squares regression (PLSR) were conducted by combining Landsat8/OLI imagery in 2016 and 91 Pinus densata sample plots in Shangri-La City of China. The mean of the root mean square error (RMSE) of 200 random sampling tests was adopted as the accuracy evaluation index of the RS models and VC as a relative cost index of the modeling samples. The research results showed that: (1) the statistical values (mean, standard deviation, and coefficient of variation) for each group of samples based on 200 experiments were not significantly different from the sampling population (91 samples) by t-test (p = 0.01), and the sampling results were reliable for establishing RS models; (2) The reliable analysis on the RFR, K-NN, and PLSR models with sample groups showed that the VC decreases with increasing samples, and the decreasing trend of VC is consistent. The number of optimal samples for RFR, K-NN, and PLSR was 55, 54, and 56 based on the spherical model of variance function, respectively, and the optimal results were consistent. (3) Among the established models based on the optimal samples, the RFR model with the determination coefficient R2 = 0.8485, RMSE = 12.25 Mg/hm2, and the estimation accuracy P = 81.125% was better than K-NN and PLSR. Therefore, they could be used as models for estimating the aboveground biomass of Pinus densata in the study area. For the optimal sample size and sampling population, the RFR model of Pinus densata AGB was established, combining 26 variable factors in the study area. The total AGB with the optimal samples was 1.22 × 107 Mg, and the estimation result with the sampling population was 1.24 × 107 Mg based on Landsat8/OLI images. Respectively, the average AGB was 66.42 Mg/hm2 and 67.51 Mg/hm2, with a relative precision of 98.39%. The estimation results of the two sample groups were consistent. Full article
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23 pages, 7356 KiB  
Article
Effects of Low Temperature on the Relationship between Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence and Gross Primary Productivity across Different Plant Function Types
by Jidai Chen, Xinjie Liu, Yan Ma and Liangyun Liu
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(15), 3716; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14153716 - 03 Aug 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1782
Abstract
Solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) has been recognized as a proxy of gross primary production (GPP) across various terrestrial biomes. However, the effects of low temperature on SIF and GPP among different plant function types (PFTs) have not yet been well-explored. To gain a [...] Read more.
Solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) has been recognized as a proxy of gross primary production (GPP) across various terrestrial biomes. However, the effects of low temperature on SIF and GPP among different plant function types (PFTs) have not yet been well-explored. To gain a better understanding of the relationship between SIF and GPP, we investigated the variation in the GPP/SIF ratio in response to low-temperature conditions using satellite and tower-based datasets. Based on the TROPOMI SIF product and FLUXCOM GPP data, we found that the SIF and GPP exhibited consistent seasonal and spatial patterns, while the GPP/SIF ratio differed for different PFTs. The GPP/SIF ratio for forest types was generally higher than 10 gC·d−1·mw−1·nm·sr, whereas the GPP/SIF ratio for grass and crop types was generally lower than 10 gC·d−1·mw−1·nm·sr. In addition, there were noticeable differences in the seasonal pattern of the GPP/SIF ratio between the selected samples that experienced low-temperature stress (below 10 °C, defined as group A) and those that grew under relatively warm conditions (above 10 °C throughout the year, defined as group B). The GPP/SIF ratio for group A generally exhibited a “hump-shaped” seasonal pattern, and that for group B showed a slightly “bowl-shaped” seasonal pattern, which means it is important to consider the effects of temperature on the SIF-GPP relationship. Through linear regression and correlation analysis, we demonstrate that there was a positive correlation between the GPP/SIF ratio and temperature for group A, with a wide temperature range including low-temperature conditions, indicating that, in this case, temperature affected the SIF–GPP relationship; however, for group B—with a temperature higher than 10 °C throughout the year—the GPP/SIF ratio was not consistently affected by temperature. The response of GPP/SIF to low temperature stress was confirmed by tower-based observations at a C3 cropland (C3CRO) site and a boreal evergreen needleleaf forest (BoENF) site. Although the relationship between the GPP/SIF ratio and temperature differed among PFTs, the GPP/SIF ratio decreased under low-temperature conditions for PFTs. Therefore, the GPP/SIF ratio was not constant and was largely influenced by low temperature for different PFTs, thus highlighting the importance of incorporating temperature into SIF-based GPP estimation. Full article
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12 pages, 6799 KiB  
Technical Note
A Method for SRTM DEM Elevation Error Correction in Forested Areas Using ICESat-2 Data and Vegetation Classification Data
by Yi Li, Haiqiang Fu, Jianjun Zhu, Kefu Wu, Panfeng Yang, Li Wang and Shijuan Gao
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(14), 3380; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14143380 - 13 Jul 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2371
Abstract
The past decade has witnessed the rapid development of the SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Mission) DEM (digital elevation model) in engineering applications and scientific research. The near-global SRTM DEM was generated based on radar interference theory. The latest version of the SRTM DEM [...] Read more.
The past decade has witnessed the rapid development of the SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Mission) DEM (digital elevation model) in engineering applications and scientific research. The near-global SRTM DEM was generated based on radar interference theory. The latest version of the SRTM DEM with a resolution of 1 arc-second has been widely used in various applications. However, many studies have shown the poor elevation accuracy of the SRTM DEM in forested areas. Recent developments in the field of spaceborne lidar have provided an additional chance to correct the elevation error of the SRTM DEM in forested areas. We developed an easy-to-use method to correct the elevation error of the SRTM DEM based on the spatial interpolation method using the recent Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 data. First, an ICESat-2 terrain control point selection criterion was proposed to reject some erroneous ICESat-2 terrains caused by many factors. Second, we derived the elevation correction surface based on the interpolation method using the refined ICESat-2 terrain. Finally, a corrected SRTM DEM of forested areas was generated through the obtained elevation correction surface. The proposed method was tested in the typical forested area located in Massachusetts, USA. The results show that the RMSE of the selected terrain control points in vegetation areas and non-vegetation areas are 1.03 and 0.68 m, respectively. The corrected SRTM DEM have an RMSE of 4.2 m which is significantly less than that of the original SRTM DEM with an RMSE of 9.8 m, which demonstrates the proposed method is feasible to correct the elevation error in forested areas. It can be concluded that the proposed method obviously decreases the elevation error of the original SRTM DEM. Full article
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23 pages, 22266 KiB  
Article
The Improved Three-Step Semi-Empirical Radiometric Terrain Correction Approach for Supervised Classification of PolSAR Data
by Lei Zhao, Erxue Chen, Zengyuan Li, Yaxiong Fan and Kunpeng Xu
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(3), 595; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14030595 - 26 Jan 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2332
Abstract
The radiometric terrain correction (RTC) is an essential processing step for supervised classification applications of polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) over mountainous areas. However, the current angular variation effect (AVE) correction methods of three-step RTC processing are difficult to apply to PolSAR supervised [...] Read more.
The radiometric terrain correction (RTC) is an essential processing step for supervised classification applications of polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) over mountainous areas. However, the current angular variation effect (AVE) correction methods of three-step RTC processing are difficult to apply to PolSAR supervised classification because of the problem of interdependence between AVE correction and classification. To address this issue, based on the three-step semi-empirical RTC approach, we propose an improved AVE correction method suitable for the supervised classification of PolSAR. We make full use of the prior knowledge required for supervised classification and RTC processing, that is, samples and elevation data, to calculate the parameters of AVE correction by constructing a weight coefficient matrix. GaoFen-3 QPSI (C-band, quad-polarization) data were used to verify the proposed method. Experimental results showed that the proposed method is available and effective for PolSAR supervised classification. The new method can effectively remove the AVE effect in the PolSAR image, and the overall accuracy of PolSAR supervised classification can be improved about 9% compared to that without AVE correction. For the fine classification of forest types, the AVE correction can improve the classification accuracy by about 20%. Full article
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17 pages, 10286 KiB  
Technical Note
An Improved Generalized Hierarchical Estimation Framework with Geostatistics for Mapping Forest Parameters and Its Uncertainty: A Case Study of Forest Canopy Height
by Junpeng Zhao, Lei Zhao, Erxue Chen, Zengyuan Li, Kunpeng Xu and Xiangyuan Ding
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(3), 568; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14030568 - 25 Jan 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3051
Abstract
Forest canopy height is an essential parameter in estimating forest aboveground biomass (AGB), growing stock volume (GSV), and carbon storage, and it can provide necessary information in forest management activities. Light direction and ranging (LiDAR) is widely used for estimating canopy height. Considering [...] Read more.
Forest canopy height is an essential parameter in estimating forest aboveground biomass (AGB), growing stock volume (GSV), and carbon storage, and it can provide necessary information in forest management activities. Light direction and ranging (LiDAR) is widely used for estimating canopy height. Considering the high cost of acquiring LiDAR data over large areas, we took a two-stage up-scaling approach in estimating forest canopy height and aimed to develop a method for quantifying the uncertainty of the estimation result. Based on the generalized hierarchical model-based (GHMB) estimation framework, a new estimation framework named RK-GHMB that makes use of a geostatistical method (regression kriging, RK) was developed. In this framework, the wall-to-wall forest canopy height and corresponding uncertainty in map unit scale are generated. This study was carried out by integrating plot data, sampled airborne LiDAR data, and wall-to-wall Ziyuan-3 satellite (ZY3) stereo images. The result shows that RK-GHMB can obtain a similar estimation accuracy (r = 0.92, MAE = 1.50 m) to GHMB (r = 0.92, MAE = 1.52 m) with plot-based reference data. For LiDAR-based reference data, the accuracy of RK-GHMB (r = 0.78, MAE = 1.75 m) is higher than that of GHMB (r = 0.75, MAE = 1.85 m). The uncertainties for all map units range from 1.54 to 3.60 m for the RK-GHMB results. The values change between 1.84 and 3.60 m for GHMB. This study demonstrates that this two-stage up-scaling approach can be used to monitor forest canopy height. The proposed RK-GHMB approach considers the spatial autocorrelation of neighboring data in the second modeling stage and can achieve a higher accuracy. Full article
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21 pages, 5277 KiB  
Article
Estimating Individual Tree Above-Ground Biomass of Chinese Fir Plantation: Exploring the Combination of Multi-Dimensional Features from UAV Oblique Photos
by Lingting Lei, Guoqi Chai, Yueting Wang, Xiang Jia, Tian Yin and Xiaoli Zhang
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(3), 504; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14030504 - 21 Jan 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2048
Abstract
Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb.) Hook) is one of the important tree species in plantation in southern China. Rapid and accurate acquisition of individual tree above-ground biomass (IT-AGB) information is of vital importance for precise monitoring and scientific management of Chinese fir [...] Read more.
Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata (Lamb.) Hook) is one of the important tree species in plantation in southern China. Rapid and accurate acquisition of individual tree above-ground biomass (IT-AGB) information is of vital importance for precise monitoring and scientific management of Chinese fir forest resources. Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) oblique photogrammetry technology can simultaneously obtain high-density point cloud data and high spatial resolution spectral information, which has been a main remote sensing source for obtaining forest fine three-dimensional structure information and provided possibility for estimating IT-AGB. In this study, we proposed a novel approach to estimate IT-AGB by introducing the color space intensity information into a regression-based model that incorporates three-dimensional point cloud and two-dimensional spectrum feature variables, and the accuracy was evaluated using a leave-one-out cross-validation approach. The results demonstrated that the intensity variables derived from the color space were strongly correlated with the IT-AGB and obviously improved the estimation accuracy. The model constructed by the combination of point cloud variables, vegetation index and RGB spatial intensity variables had high accuracy (R2 = 0.79; RMSECV = 44.77 kg; and rRMSECV = 0.25). Comparing the performance of estimating IT-AGB models with different spatial resolution images (0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.5 and 1 m), the model was the best at the spatial resolution of 0.2 m, which was significantly better than that of the other four. Moreover, we also divided the individual tree canopy into four directions (East, West, South and North) to develop estimation models respectively. The result showed that the IT-AGB estimation capacity varied significantly in different directions, and the West-model had better performance, with the estimation accuracy of 67%. This study indicates the potential of using oblique photogrammetry technology to estimate AGB at an individual tree scale, which can support carbon stock estimation as well as precision forestry application. Full article
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20 pages, 3733 KiB  
Article
Performance and Sensitivity of Individual Tree Segmentation Methods for UAV-LiDAR in Multiple Forest Types
by Kaisen Ma, Zhenxiong Chen, Liyong Fu, Wanli Tian, Fugen Jiang, Jing Yi, Zhi Du and Hua Sun
Remote Sens. 2022, 14(2), 298; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rs14020298 - 10 Jan 2022
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 3858
Abstract
Using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) as platforms for light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensors offers the efficient operation and advantages of active remote sensing; hence, UAV-LiDAR plays an important role in forest resource investigations. However, high-precision individual tree segmentation, in which the most [...] Read more.
Using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) as platforms for light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensors offers the efficient operation and advantages of active remote sensing; hence, UAV-LiDAR plays an important role in forest resource investigations. However, high-precision individual tree segmentation, in which the most appropriate individual tree segmentation method and the optimal algorithm parameter settings must be determined, remains highly challenging when applied to multiple forest types. This article compared the applicability of methods based on a canopy height model (CHM) and a normalized point cloud (NPC) obtained from UAV-LiDAR point cloud data. The watershed algorithm, local maximum method, point cloud-based cluster segmentation, and layer stacking were used to segment individual trees and extract the tree height parameters from nine plots of three forest types. The individual tree segmentation results were evaluated based on experimental field data, and the sensitivity of the parameter settings in the segmentation methods was analyzed. Among all plots, the overall accuracy F of individual tree segmentation was between 0.621 and 1, the average RMSE of tree height extraction was 1.175 m, and the RMSE% was 12.54%. The results indicated that compared with the CHM-based methods, the NPC-based methods exhibited better performance in individual tree segmentation; additionally, the type and complexity of a forest influence the accuracy of individual tree segmentation, and point cloud-based cluster segmentation is the preferred scheme for individual tree segmentation, while layer stacking should be used as a supplement in multilayer forests and extremely complex heterogeneous forests. This research provides important guidance for the use of UAV-LiDAR to accurately obtain forest structure parameters and perform forest resource investigations. In addition, the methods compared in this paper can be employed to extract vegetation indices, such as the canopy height, leaf area index, and vegetation coverage. Full article
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Planned Papers

The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.

Assessment of the classification of orthorectified images produced using unamaned aerial systems: a reedcandary grass treatment case

Sudeera Wickramarathna 1 and Bogdan M Strimbu 1*

Arguably the most popular remote sensing products are classified images. However, no definitive procedures were produced to assess the accuracy of the classification that simultaneously considers the resources available and the field efforts. The explosive usage of unmamed aerial systems (UAS) in land survey added new challenges to the asseement of the classification, as the orthorectified images are ususlay produced with significant artifacts. Therefore, the objective of the present study is to identify the optinal ratio between training and validation sample size within a supervised classification approach applied to UAS orthophotos. We have used as a study case a wetland area west of Portland, OR, USA, which was treated with glyphosate for removing the reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea L.). A completely randomized design with five replications and six glyphosate formulations was used to assess te health of readcanary grass following repeated treatments. The change in reed canary grass health was observed with high-resolution four bands imagery acquired with a SlantRange 3PX camera installed on a DJI Matrice 210 UAS. The orthophoto created from images was produced with Pix4D, which was subsequently preprecessed with Image 2020 to reduce the noise, shadows, and artifacts (e.g., strips and missing data). Simple random sampling and stratified random sampling were applied to collect training and validation samples, respectively, each using eight ratios of training to validation samples. All images were classified with Maximum Likelihood Classification algorithms. We found that increasing the ratio of training to validation sample size enhances classification accuracy, with the  3: 1 ratio being the most reliable in classifying the health of read canary grass. Image preprocessing and enhancement are essential for UAS based imagery, as allows the usage of spectral information even when less energy is available (i.e., reduction of shadow).

 

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