scholarly journals Estimating the Urban Fractional Vegetation Cover Using an Object-Based Mixture Analysis Method and Sentinel-2 MSI Imagery

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 341-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yaotong Cai ◽  
Meng Zhang ◽  
Hui Lin
Keyword(s):  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Analysis Method ◽  
Mixture Analysis ◽  
Fractional Vegetation Cover ◽  
Object Based ◽  
Sentinel 2

scholarly journals Fractional Vegetation Cover Derived from UAV and Sentinel-2 Imagery as a Proxy for In Situ FAPAR in a Dense Mixed-Coniferous Forest?

2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 380
Author(s):  
Birgitta Putzenlechner ◽  
Philip Marzahn ◽  
Philipp Koal ◽  
Arturo Sánchez-Azofeifa
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Satellite Remote Sensing ◽  
Coniferous Forest ◽  
Spatiotemporal Variability ◽  
Fractional Vegetation Cover ◽  
Spatially Distributed ◽  
Sentinel 2

The fraction of absorbed photosynthetic active radiation (FAPAR) is an essential climate variable for assessing the productivity of ecosystems. Satellite remote sensing provides spatially distributed FAPAR products, but their accurate and efficient validation is challenging in forest environments. As the FAPAR is linked to the canopy structure, it may be approximated by the fractional vegetation cover (FCOVER) under the assumption that incoming radiation is either absorbed or passed through gaps in the canopy. With FCOVER being easier to retrieve, FAPAR validation activities could benefit from a priori information on FCOVER. Spatially distributed FCOVER is available from satellite remote sensing or can be retrieved from imagery of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) at a centimetric resolution. We investigated remote sensing-derived FCOVER as a proxy for in situ FAPAR in a dense mixed-coniferous forest, considering both absolute values and spatiotemporal variability. Therefore, direct FAPAR measurements, acquired with a Wireless Sensor Network, were related to FCOVER derived from UAV and Sentinel-2 (S2) imagery at different seasons. The results indicated that spatially aggregated UAV-derived FCOVER was close (RMSE = 0.02) to in situ FAPAR during the peak vegetation period when the canopy was almost closed. The S2 FCOVER product underestimated both the in situ FAPAR and UAV-derived FCOVER (RMSE > 0.3), which we attributed to the generic nature of the retrieval algorithm and the coarser resolution of the product. We concluded that UAV-derived FCOVER may be used as a proxy for direct FAPAR measurements in dense canopies. As another key finding, the spatial variability of the FCOVER consistently surpassed that of the in situ FAPAR, which was also well-reflected in the S2 FAPAR and FCOVER products. We recommend integrating this experimental finding as consistency criteria in the context of ECV quality assessments. To facilitate the FAPAR sampling activities, we further suggest assessing the spatial variability of UAV-derived FCOVER to benchmark sampling sizes for in situ FAPAR measurements. Finally, our study contributes to refining the FAPAR sampling protocols needed for the validation and improvement of FAPAR estimates in forest environments.

scholarly journals Assessment of Sentinel-2 MSI Spectral Band Reflectances for Estimating Fractional Vegetation Cover

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1927 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bing Wang ◽  
Kun Jia ◽  
Shunlin Liang ◽  
Xianhong Xie ◽  
Xiangqin Wei ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Spectral Band ◽  
Estimation Accuracy ◽  
Radiative Transfer Model ◽  
Transfer Model ◽  
Fractional Vegetation Cover ◽  
Process Simulations ◽  
Comparable Accuracy ◽  
Sentinel 2

Fractional vegetation cover (FVC) is an essential parameter for characterizing the land surface vegetation conditions and plays an important role in earth surface process simulations and global change studies. The Sentinel-2 missions carrying multi-spectral instrument (MSI) sensors with 13 multispectral bands are potentially useful for estimating FVC. However, the performance of these bands for FVC estimation is unclear. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the performance of Sentinel-2 MSI spectral band reflectances on FVC estimation. The samples, including the Sentinel-2 MSI canopy reflectances and corresponding FVC values, were simulated using the PROSPECT + SAIL radiative transfer model under different conditions, and random forest regression (RFR) method was then used to develop FVC estimation models and assess the performance of various band reflectances for FVC estimation. These models were finally evaluated using field survey data. The results indicate that the three most important bands of Sentinel-2 MSI data for FVC estimation are band 4 (Red), band 12 (SWIR2) and band 8a (NIR2). FVC estimation using these bands has a comparable accuracy (root mean square error (RMSE) = 0.085) with that using all bands (RMSE = 0.090). The results also demonstrate that band 12 had a better performance for FVC estimation than the green band (RMSE = 0.097). However, the newly added red-edge bands, with low scores in the RFR model, have little significance for improving FVC estimation accuracy compared with the Red, NIR2 and SWIR2 bands.

scholarly journals Extracting Fractional Vegetation Cover from Digital Photographs: A Comparison of In Situ, SamplePoint, and Image Classification Methods

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (21) ◽  
pp. 7310
Author(s):  
Xiaolei Yu ◽  
Xulin Guo
Keyword(s):  
Image Classification ◽  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Unsupervised Classification ◽  
Classification Methods ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Fractional Cover ◽  
Fractional Vegetation Cover ◽  
Object Based

Fractional vegetation cover is a key indicator of rangeland health. However, survey techniques such as line-point intercept transect, pin frame quadrats, and visual cover estimates can be time-consuming and are prone to subjective variations. For this reason, most studies only focus on overall vegetation cover, ignoring variation in live and dead fractions. In the arid regions of the Canadian prairies, grass cover is typically a mixture of green and senescent plant material, and it is essential to monitor both green and senescent vegetation fractional cover. In this study, we designed and built a camera stand to acquire the close-range photographs of rangeland fractional vegetation cover. Photographs were processed by four approaches: SamplePoint software, object-based image analysis (OBIA), unsupervised and supervised classifications to estimate the fractional cover of green vegetation, senescent vegetation, and background substrate. These estimates were compared to in situ surveys. Our results showed that the SamplePoint software is an effective alternative to field measurements, while the unsupervised classification lacked accuracy and consistency. The Object-based image classification performed better than other image classification methods. Overall, SamplePoint and OBIA produced mean values equivalent to those produced by in situ assessment. These findings suggest an unbiased, consistent, and expedient alternative to in situ grassland vegetation fractional cover estimation, which provides a permanent image record.

scholarly journals Spatiotemporal Evolution of Fractional Vegetation Cover and Its Response to Climate Change Based on MODIS Data in the Subtropical Region of China

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 913
Author(s):  
Hua Liu ◽  
Xuejian Li ◽  
Fangjie Mao ◽  
Meng Zhang ◽  
Di’en Zhu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Minimum Temperature ◽  
Maximum Temperature ◽  
Distribution Area ◽  
Spatiotemporal Pattern ◽  
Climate Factors ◽  
Important Indicator ◽  
Fractional Vegetation Cover ◽  
Annual Minimum Temperature ◽  
Total Study Area

The subtropical vegetation plays an important role in maintaining the structure and function of global ecosystems, and its contribution to the global carbon balance are receiving increasing attention. The fractional vegetation cover (FVC) as an important indicator for monitoring environment change, is widely used to analyze the spatiotemporal pattern of regional and even global vegetation. China is an important distribution area of subtropical vegetation. Therefore, we first used the dimidiate pixel model to extract the subtropical FVC of China during 2001–2018 based on MODIS land surface reflectance data, and then used the linear regression analysis and the variation coefficient to explore its spatiotemporal variations characteristics. Finally, the partial correlation analysis and the partial derivative model were used to analyze the influences and contributions of climate factors on FVC, respectively. The results showed that (1) the subtropical FVC had obvious spatiotemporal heterogeneity; the FVC high-coverage and medium-coverage zones were concentratedly and their combined area accounted for more than 70% of the total study area. (2) The interannual variation in the average subtropical FVC from 2001 to 2018 showed a significant growth trend. (3) In 76.28% of the study area, the regional FVC showed an increasing trend, and the remaining regional FVC showed a decreasing trend. However, the overall fluctuations in the FVC (increasing or decreasing) in the region were relatively stable. (4) The influences of climate factors to the FVC exhibited obvious spatial differences. More than half of all pixels exhibited the influence of the average annual minimum temperature and the annual precipitation had positive on FVC, while the average annual maximum temperature had negative on FVC. (5) The contributions of climate changes to FVC had obvious heterogeneity, and the average annual minimum temperature was the main contribution factor affecting the dynamic variations of FVC.

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