Estimating Visible Band Albedo from Aerial Orthophotographs in Urban Areas

Albedo is an important parameter in many environmental and renewable energy models. Satellite sensors can be used to derive broadband or narrowband albedos. However, the spatial resolution of such data can be insufficient in urban areas with complex morphology and land cover diversity. In this study, we propose the use of widely available aerial orthophotographs to derive visible band albedo in urban surfaces that can be effectively used in high-resolution applications. The solution is based on the estimation of the reflected irradiance captured by an RGB sensor and approximated by the brightness component in the hue-saturation-brightness (HSB) color model and incident solar irradiance modelled by the r.sun module in GRASS GIS. The visible band albedo values are calibrated by published reference values for selected land cover classes or, alternatively, by a spectroradiometer. The method is applied to the central part of Košice and compared to visible band albedo derived from the Landsat 8 OLI and Sentinel 2A sensors and previously published typical albedo values for various land cover classes, resulting in reasonable agreement. The proposed methodology is implemented using standard GIS tools that are easily applicable to any high-resolution urban data.

Tunable Smith–Purcell radiation from MoS2-based grating

Different from the traditional tunable Smith–Purcell (SP) radiation in the graphene-based gratings in the terahertz band, we propose a tunable SP radiation generated from an electron beam passing through a single-layer molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) based grating in the visible band. The comparison between the simulation and the theoretical results shows good agreement. By varying the Fermi energy of MoS2 from 0.025 eV to 0.125 eV for the MoS2-based grating, we can not only control the radiation frequency but also can change the radiation magnitude. The radiation frequency, angle, and magnitude varying with the Fermi energy are also discussed, respectively. These properties would have potential applications in developing tunable visible SP radiation.

Influence of Spatial Resolution for Vegetation Indices’ Extraction Using Visible Bands from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles’ Orthomosaics Datasets

The consolidation of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) photogrammetric techniques for campaigns with high and medium observation scales has triggered the development of new application areas. Most of these vehicles are equipped with common visible-band sensors capable of mapping areas of interest at various spatial resolutions. It is often necessary to identify vegetated areas for masking purposes during the postprocessing phase, excluding them for the digital elevation models (DEMs) generation or change detection purposes. However, vegetation can be extracted using sensors capable of capturing the near-infrared part of the spectrum, which cannot be recorded by visible (RGB) cameras. In this study, after reviewing different visible-band vegetation indices in various environments using different UAV technology, the influence of the spatial resolution of orthomosaics generated by photogrammetric processes in the vegetation extraction was examined. The triangular greenness index (TGI) index provided a high level of separability between vegetation and nonvegetation areas for all case studies in any spatial resolution. The efficiency of the indices remained fundamentally linked to the context of the scenario under investigation, and the correlation between spatial resolution and index incisiveness was found to be more complex than might be trivially assumed.

UAV-based cm-scale mapping of biofilms and Chl-a patterns in glacial forefields using visible band ratios

<p>Biofilms have received great attention in the last few decades including their potential contribution to carbon fluxes and ecosystem engineering in aquatic ecosystems. Quantifying the spatial distribution of biofilms and their dynamics through time is a critical challenge. Satellite imagery is one solution, and can provide multi- and hyper-spectral data but not necessarily the spatial resolution that such studies need. Multi- and hyper-spectral data sets may be of particular value for not simply detecting the presense/absence of biofilms but also indicators of primary productivity such as chlorophyll-a concentrations. Spatial resolution is sensor quality dependent, but also controlled by sensor elevation above the ground. Hence, higher resolutions can be achieved either by using a very expensive sensor or by decreasing the distance between the target area and the sensor itself. To date, sensor technology has advanced to a point where multi- or even hyper-spectral cameras can be easily transported by UAVs, potentially yielding wide-range spectral information at unprecedented spatial resolutions. That said, such set ups have often exorbitant costs (several 1000s of US$) that few research institutions can afford or, due to the high probability of sensor lost, are risky to use. This is particularly true for glacier forefields where low air temperatures, dust and sudden wind gusts can easily damage both UAV and sensor components.</p><p>In this paper we test the performance of visible band ratios for mapping both biofilms and chlorophyll-a concentrations in an alpine glacier forefield characterized by a well-developed and heterogeneous (kryal, krenal and rhithral) stream system. The paper shows that low-cost and consumer grade UAVs can be easily deployed in such extreme environments, delivering high temporal resolution datasets and with sufficient quality RGB images for photogrammetric (SfM-MVS) processing and post-processing image analysis (i.e., band ratios). This paper shows also that visible band ratios correlates with chlorophyll-a concentrations yielding reliable chlorophyll-a information of the forefield and at the centimetric scale. This in turn allows for precise identification of the environmental conditions that lead to both biofilm development and removal through perturbation.</p>

Ultra-violet to visible band gap engineering of cubic halide KCaCl3 perovskite under pressure for optoelectronic applications: insights from DFT

The electronic band gap shrinks from the UV to visible region of cubic halide KCaCl3 perovskite under pressure, making it easier to move electrons from the VB to the CB, which improves optoelectronic device efficiency.