Module III

 Concepts of Remote sensing

 Idealized Remote sensing System characteristics
 Types of Remote sensing
 Remote Sensing from Space
 Data Interpretation
 Application of Remote sensing
 LIDAR
 RADAR
 SONAR
Remote Sensing
Remote Sensing is the science and art of obtaining information about an
object area or phenomenon through an analysis of the data acquired by a
device which is not in contact with the object, area or phenomenon under
investigation.
The term remote sensing was first used in the early 1960s.
In the present context remote sensing means the process of acquiring information
about any object without physically contacting it anyway regardless of distance.
The process of sensing may be achieved in the absence of any matter in the
intervening space between the object and observer.
In that case information about the object, area or phenomenon must be available
in a form which can be impressed by the sensor.
This information carrier or communication link is electromagnetic energy.
Absorptance : The ratio of the radiant energy absorbed by a substance to the
energy it receives.
Band : The specific wavelength interval in the electromagnetic spectrum.
Digital image : An array of digital numbers (DN) arranged in rows and
columns, having the property of an intensity value and their locations.
Digital Number : An intensity value of a pixel in a digital image.
Digital Image Processing : The numerical manipulation of DN values for
the purpose of extracting information about the phenomena of the surface
they represent.
Electromagnetic Radiation (EMR) : The Energy propagated through a space
or a medium at a speed of light.
Electromagnetic Spectrum : The continuum of EMR that ranges from short
wave high frequency cosmic radiations to long wavelength low frequency
radio waves.
Gray scale : A medium to calibrate the variations in the brightness of an
image that ranges from black to white with intermediate grey values.
Image : The permanent record of a scene comprising of natural and man-
made features and activities, produced by photographic and non–
photographic means.
Scene : The ground area covered by an image or a photograph.
Sensor : Any imaging or non–imaging device that receives EMR and
converts it into a signal that can be recorded and displayed as photographic
or digital image.
Reflectance : The ratio of the radiant energy reflected by a substance to the
energy it receives.
Spectral Band : The range of the wavelengths in the continuous spectrum
such as the green band ranges from 0.5 to .6 μ and the range of NIR band
0.7 to 1.1 μ.
 Satellite Picture of June 2004
Post Tsunami

Satellite Picture of June 2004

Pre Tsunami
Idealized Remote sensing System characteristics
These basic processes that help in the collection of information about
the properties of the objects and phenomena of the earth surface are as
follows :
• (a) Source of Energy (sun/self-emission);
• (b) Transmission of energy from the source to the surface of the earth;
• (c) Interaction of energy with the earth’s surface;
• (d) Propagation of reflected/emitted energy through atmosphere;
• (e) Detection of the reflected/emitted energy by the sensor;
• (f) Conversion of energy received into photographic/digital form of data;
• (g) Extraction of the information contents from the data products; and
• (h) Conversion of information into Map/Tabular forms.
a. Source of Energy:
Sun is the most important source of energy used in remote sensing. The energy may
also be artificially generated and used to collect information about the objects and
phenomena such as flashguns or energy beams used in radar (radio detection and
ranging).
b. Transmission of Energy from the Source to the Surface of the Earth:
The energy that emanates from a source propagates between the source and the
object surface in the form of the waves of energy at a speed of light (300,000 km per
second). Such energy propagation is called the Electromagnetic Radiation (EMR).
The energy waves vary in size and frequency. The plotting of such variations is
known as the Electromagnetic Spectrum . On the basis of the size of the waves and
frequency, the energy waves are grouped into Gamma, X–rays, Ultraviolet rays,
Visible rays, Infrared rays , Microwaves and Radio waves. Each one of these broad
regions of spectrum is used in different applications. However, the visible, infrared
and microwave regions of energy are used in remote sensing.
(c) Interaction of energy with the earth’s surface
The propagating energy finally interacts with the objects of the surface of the
earth. This leads to absorption, transmission, reflection or emission of energy
from the objects. We all know that all objects vary in their composition,
appearance forms and other properties. Hence, the objects’ responses to the
energy they receive are also not uniform. Besides, one particular object also
responds differently to the energy it receives in different regions of the spectrum.

a fresh water body absorbs more energy in the red and infrared regions of the
spectrum and appears dark/black in a satellite image whereas turbid water body
reflects more in blue and green regions of spectrum and appears in light tone.
(d) Propagation of reflected/emitted energy through atmosphere
When energy is reflected from objects of the earth’s surface, it re–enters into the
atmosphere. You may be aware of the fact that atmosphere comprises of gases,
water molecules and dust particles.
The energy reflected from the objects comes in contact with the atmospheric
constituents and the properties of the original energy get modified.
Whereas the Carbon dioxide (CO2), the Hydrogen (H), and the water molecules
absorb energy in the middle infrared region, the dust particles scatter the blue
energy.
Hence, the energy that is either absorbed or scattered by the atmospheric
constituents never reaches to sensor placed onboard a satellite and the properties
of the objects carried by such energy waves are left unrecorded.
(e) Detection of the reflected/emitted energy by the sensor
The sensors recording the energy that they receive are placed in a near– polar sun
synchronous orbit at an altitude of 700 – 900 km. These satellites are known as
remote sensing satellites (e.g. Indian Remote Sensing Series).
As against these satellites, the weather monitoring and telecommunication satellites
are placed in a Geostationary position (the satellite is always positioned over its
orbit that synchronizes with the direction of the rotation of the earth) and revolves
around the earth (coinciding with the direction of the movement of the earth over its
axis) at an altitude of nearly 36,000 km (e.g. INSAT series of satellites).
Remote sensing satellites are deployed with sensors which are capable of collecting
the EMR reflected by the objects.
The sensors used in remote sensing satellites possess a mechanism that is different
from photographic camera in collecting and recording the information. The images
so acquired by space-borne sensors are in digital format as against the photographic
format obtained through a camera-based system.
(f) Conversion of energy received into photographic/digital form of
data
The radiations received by the sensor are electronically converted into a digital
image.
It comprises digital numbers that are arranged in rows and columns.
These numbers may also be converted into an analogue (picture) form of data
product.
The sensor onboard an earth-orbiting satellite electronically transmits the collected
image data to an Earth Receiving Station located in different parts of the world.

In India, one such station is located at Shadnagar near Hyderabad

(g) Extraction of the information contents from the data products
After the image data is received at the earth station, it is processed for elimination of
errors caused during image data collection.
Once the image is corrected, information extraction is carried out from digital
images using digital image processing techniques and from analogue form of data
products by applying visual interpretation methods.
(h) Conversion of information into Map/Tabular forms
The interpreted information is finally delineated and converted into different
layers of thematic maps. Besides, quantitative measures are also taken to
generate a tabular data
Types of Remote Sensing
Remote sensing systems can be classified on the basis of
(a) the source of radiation
(b) the spectral regions used for data acquisition.
Based on the source of radiation they can be classified as:
i. Passive remote sensing systems
ii. Active remote sensing systems

Passive remote sensing systems either detect the solar radiation reflected by the
objects on the surface of the Earth or detect the thermal or microwave radiation
emitted by them.
Active remote sensing systems make use of active artificial sources of radiation
generally mounted on the remote sensing platform. These sources illuminate the
objects on the ground and the energy reflected or scattered by these objects is
utilized here. Examples of active remote sensing systems include microwave and
laser-based systems.
 Depending on the spectral regions used for data acquisition, they can be classified
as:
i. Optical remote sensing systems (including visible, near IR and shortwave IR systems)
ii. Thermal infrared remote sensing systems
iii. Microwave remote sensing systems
Optical remote sensing systems mostly make use of visible (0.3-0.7μm), near IR
(0.72-1.30μm) and shortwave IR (1.3-3.0μm) wavelength bands to form images of
the Earth’s surface. The images are formed by detecting the solar radiation
reflected by objects on the ground.
Thermal infrared remote sensing systems employ the mid wave IR (3-5μm) and
the long wave IR (8-14μm) wavelength bands. The imagery here is derived from
the thermal radiation emitted by the Earth’s surface and objects. As
different portions of the Earth’s surface are at different temperatures, thermal
images therefore provide information on the temperature of the ground and water
surfaces and the objects on them.
Microwave remote sensing systems generally operate in the 1 cm to 1m
wavelength band.
Microwave radiation can penetrate through clouds, haze and dust, making
microwave remote sensing a weather independent technique. This feature makes
microwave remote sensing systems quite attractive as compared to optical and
thermal systems, which are weather dependent.
Microwave remote sensing systems work both during the day as well as at night as
they are independent of the solar illumination conditions.
Another advantage that a microwave remote sensing system offers is that it
provides unique information on sea wind and wave direction that cannot be
provided by visible and infrared remote sensing systems.
The need for sophisticated data analysis and poorer resolution due to the use of
longer wavelength bands are the disadvantages of microwave remote sensing
systems.
Shorter microwave wavelength bands are utilized for the analyses of hidden
mineral resources as they penetrate through the Earth’s surface and the vegetation,
whereas longer wavelength bands are utilized for determining the roughness of the
various features on the Earth’s surface.
 Microwave remote sensing systems can be both passive as well as active.
Stefan-Boltzmann Law
M= 𝜎𝑇 4

Wein’s displacement Law

𝐴
λ𝑚 =
𝑇
Plank’s Law
𝐶1
𝑀λ = 𝐶2 −1
( )
λ5 𝑒 λ𝑇
EM Radiation and The Atmosphere:-
The water vapour, oxygen, ozone, CO2, aerosols present in the atmosphere
influence EM radiation through the mechanism of (i) Scattering (ii) Absorption
(i) Scattering:-
Selective Scattering
Rayleigh’s Scatter
Mie’s Scatter
Non selective Scattering
(ii)Absorption

Atmospheric Windows
Remote Sensing from Space
Remote Sensing Platforms are stages to mount sensors or camera to be used to
acquire information about a target under investigation.
The platform provides support for the sensor and Platforms can be divided into three
types
 Ground Based (mainly used to collect spectral information)
 Air borne Platform (sub-orbital or aerial remote sensing system)
o Balloon
o Drones
o Aircraft
o Low Altitude Aircraft
o High Altitude Aircraft
 Space based Platform
o Manned satellite platform
o Unmanned satellite platform.
• Landsat series, SPOT series and IRS series etc.
Data Interpretation
Sensors detect the amount of energy reflected/emitted from the Earth
surface and thereby provide information about its characteristics.
Most remote sensing instruments (sensors) are designed to measure
photons.
Fundamental to this operation is a device known as a detector which works
to measure radiation (a beam of photons) on the basis of the photo-
electric effect.
When a light sensitive material is subject to a beam of photons, electrical
energy is released and this energy is proportional to the amount of incoming
radiation. A sensor thus provides a means of measuring radiation.
(i) Active and passive sensors
(ii) Imaging and non-imaging sensors
Sensor Resolutions
1. Spatial Resolutions
2. Spectral Resolutions
3. Radiometric Resolutions
Application of Remote sensing
Remote sensing is one of the methods commonly used for collecting physical
data to be integrated into GIS. Remote sensors collect data from objects on the
earth without any direct contact. They do this by detecting energy reflected from the
earth, and are typically mounted on satellites or aircraft.
Application of RS can be seen in many fields such as
1. Agriculture
2. Forestry
3. LULC
4. Geology
5. Water Resources
6. Coastal Env
7. Ocean Resources etc.
 LIDAR(Light detection and ranging)
LIDAR is a surveying method that measures the distance to a target by
illuminating the target with pulsed laser light and measuring the reflected pulses
with sensor.
Types of LIDAR
 Airborne
• Topographic
• Bathymetric
 Terrestrial
• Mobile
• Stationary
Active remote sensing : a very narrow, high energy ray is sent from a source
(laser) to the scene, reflected back and recorded. Active means it works day and
night (even better at night due to no sun interference). Active also means it can
measure in texture less areas including shadows.
Flooding, coastline erosion changes, vegetation, forestry etc.
Based on our conventional understanding, : LiDAR is used for land, and sonar
is used for water. But LiDAR can also be used in underwater applications.
 RADAR (Radio Detection And Ranging)
 Radar sensors transmit radiation at radio wavelengths (i.e. from around 1 cm to several
meters) and use the measured return to infer properties of the earth’s surface. The surface
properties affecting the return (of which the most important are the dielectric constant and
geometrical structure) are very different from those determining observations at optical and
infrared frequencies.
 Hence radar offers distinctive perspectives on the earth. In addition, the transparency of the
atmosphere at radar wavelengths means that cloud does not prevent observation of the earth,
so radar is well suited to monitoring purposes.
 Three types of spaceborne radar instrument are particularly important.
 Scatterometers make very accurate measurements of the backscatter from the earth, their
most important use being to derive wind speeds and directions over the ocean.
 Altimeters measure the distance between the satellite platform and the surface to centimetric
accuracy, from which several important geophysical quantities can be recovered, such as the
topography of the ocean surface and its variation, ocean currents, significant wave height,
and the mass balance and dynamics of the major ice sheets.
 The third and most versatile radar instrument is synthetic aperture radar (SAR). A unique
aspect of SAR is its ability to provide precise measurements of surface displacement, using
techniques known as interferometry and differential interferometry.
 This capability, together with the fine spatial resolution of the images and the provision of
long temporal sequences undisturbed by cloud, has led to SAR being applied in numerous
fields, from topographic mapping to oceanography.
SONAR (Sound Navigation and Ranging)
Sonar, or so(und) n(avigation) a(nd) r(adar), is like LiDAR in that it uses signal
pulses to detect distance, but the transmitted signal is composed of sound waves
rather than light pulses.
Similar to how dolphins communicate using echolocation, sonar waves reflect off
an object, bounce back to the sensor, and the data is then used to determine
distance. Sound travels through water better than light, and can more easily reach
the bottom of the ocean floor
The Two Types of sonar (just as there are two different types of LiDAR, there are
also two types of sonar)

Passive sonar utilizes sensors that listen for any sounds coming from the depths of the
water. When an object or sea creature emits sound waves, the sensor analyzes it to
determine the type of source the sound came from.

Active sonar emits sound waves, and a receptor waits for them to reflect from objects.
By calculating the time it takes for the sound wave to return to the receptor, the
distance to the object can be estimated.