W.L. Stefanov, P.R. Christensen, Department of Geological Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287 USA
M. Ramsey, Department of Geology and Planetary Science, 200 SRCC Building, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
Recent studies indicate that human activities are a significant component of ecosystem processes that need to be incorporated into existing ecological models. The Central Arizona-Phoenix Long Term Ecological Research (CAP LTER) site was recently established (along with a sister LTER site in Baltimore, Maryland) to study biogeochemical, geophysical, and social processes operating in a human-dominated ecosystem. Remote sensing is an integral component of CAP LTER research, and drives the development of innovative approaches addressing a diverse array of urban ecological questions. A prime example of this is the development and application of a knowledge-based system incorporating Landsat Thematic Mapper data, vegetation indices, image variance texture, and ancillary datasets to classify land cover in the Phoenix metropolitan region for a 1985-1998 time series.
An associated research program that provides the opportunity to apply CAP LTER research results on a global scale is the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer Urban Environmental Monitoring (ASTER UEM) program. The ASTER instrument onboard the Terra satellite acquires data in the visible to near infrared (15 m/pixel), short-wave infrared (30 m/pixel), and thermal infrared (90 m/pixel). The primary goal of the UEM program is to monitor land cover and land use change over a six-year period for 100 global urban centers. Land cover classification techniques developed for the CAP LTER project are being applied to ASTER UEM data. Initial results using image variance texture analysis suggest that urban centers can be classified into decentralized (ex. Phoenix), centralized (ex. Baltimore), and intermediate (ex. Madrid) textural types.
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Submitted: 2nd Symposium, Remote Sensing of Urban Areas, Regensburg, Germany
Date: June 22-23, 2001