3.1.3 Land Cover
The most famous European project for global land cover monitoring is the CORINE
Land Cover (CLC) program (Kopecka ´ et al. 2014). It was created as a project under
the EU Phare Topic Link on Land Cover in the early 1990s and is well known as a
unique map composition based on satellite image interpretation. It is a homogeneous database firstly covering the European Union countries and later (in the late
1990s) the entire Europe.
The image outputs were prepared in the form of topographic map sheets at the
scale of 1:100,000. These map sheets were created by using georectified Landsat
Thematic Mapper (TM) data acquired between 1990 and 1993. Individual types of
Earth’s surface by the interpretative key of the CORINE program were performed
by hand drawing on transparent foils and fitted with a three-digit identification
code. Five basic classes were created, including artificial surfaces, agricultural
areas, forest and semi natural areas, wetlands, and water bodies, which were further
sub-divided up to the third level. All interpreted areas had been defined as a closed
polygon with a minimum area of 25 ha and in case of linear elements with minimum
width of 100 m. Transparency with interpretations were scanned and vectorised
secondarily into GIS vector layers, where polygon codes were converted into the
attribute form. For the attributes colours were assigned and entire layer had been
printed as a thematic map with legend, where the colour code characterized land
cover type that had been classified on the earth’s surface. Given the success of the
primary mapping, it was decided to extend the interpretation into the time scale.
The aim of this study was to define temporal changes in the Corine Land Cover
database and to explain the reason of the alteration.
3.1.4 Large City Dynamics Monitoring
Data from the CORINE Land Cover can be used to assess the expansion of large
European cities. For smaller cities the information from this data source at the scale
of 1:100,000 is insufficient. Also the geometric accuracy of the employed satellites
(namely Landsat and SPOT) may not be sufficient for detailed mapping of smaller
cities. Satellite data were not available before 1972, with an exception of some
declassified spying satellite images whose information potential has not been fully
appreciated. Another option is, of course, to include contemporary maps or aerial
photographs. Historical aerial photographs as well as declassified spying satellite
images vary in quality, and usually it is difficult to find technical and photogrammetric parameters for these images. Unlike the maps, however, these photographs
can be very useful to examine the recent past with details.
3 Combining Different Data Sources for City Growth Analysis. . .
39
The most famous European project for global land cover monitoring is the CORINE
Land Cover (CLC) program (Kopecka ´ et al. 2014). It was created as a project under
the EU Phare Topic Link on Land Cover in the early 1990s and is well known as a
unique map composition based on satellite image interpretation. It is a homogeneous database firstly covering the European Union countries and later (in the late
1990s) the entire Europe.
The image outputs were prepared in the form of topographic map sheets at the
scale of 1:100,000. These map sheets were created by using georectified Landsat
Thematic Mapper (TM) data acquired between 1990 and 1993. Individual types of
Earth’s surface by the interpretative key of the CORINE program were performed
by hand drawing on transparent foils and fitted with a three-digit identification
code. Five basic classes were created, including artificial surfaces, agricultural
areas, forest and semi natural areas, wetlands, and water bodies, which were further
sub-divided up to the third level. All interpreted areas had been defined as a closed
polygon with a minimum area of 25 ha and in case of linear elements with minimum
width of 100 m. Transparency with interpretations were scanned and vectorised
secondarily into GIS vector layers, where polygon codes were converted into the
attribute form. For the attributes colours were assigned and entire layer had been
printed as a thematic map with legend, where the colour code characterized land
cover type that had been classified on the earth’s surface. Given the success of the
primary mapping, it was decided to extend the interpretation into the time scale.
The aim of this study was to define temporal changes in the Corine Land Cover
database and to explain the reason of the alteration.
3.1.4 Large City Dynamics Monitoring
Data from the CORINE Land Cover can be used to assess the expansion of large
European cities. For smaller cities the information from this data source at the scale
of 1:100,000 is insufficient. Also the geometric accuracy of the employed satellites
(namely Landsat and SPOT) may not be sufficient for detailed mapping of smaller
cities. Satellite data were not available before 1972, with an exception of some
declassified spying satellite images whose information potential has not been fully
appreciated. Another option is, of course, to include contemporary maps or aerial
photographs. Historical aerial photographs as well as declassified spying satellite
images vary in quality, and usually it is difficult to find technical and photogrammetric parameters for these images. Unlike the maps, however, these photographs
can be very useful to examine the recent past with details.
3 Combining Different Data Sources for City Growth Analysis. . .
39