9. THE CONTRIBUTION OF REMOTE SENSING
TECHNOLOGIES AND ALGORITHMS TO LAND SURFACE
PROCESSES STUDIES
75
such data are much more apt at effectively constraining the inversion
problem and limiting the number of solutions which can acceptably account
for the observed variations in spectral and directional reflectance (e.g.,
Martonchik et al. 1998a, Martonchik et al. 1998b, Knyazikhin et al. 1998).
Thus, technological advances in aerospace and computer technologies
will allow the acquisition of data under much better defined observation
protocols, and recent theoretical and simulation achievements will permit to
take better advantage of these new measurements. For instance, the
observation of the reflectance of the Earth in the blue spectral region has
already permitted the development and implementation of a new generation
of spectral indices optimized to characterize the surface without being too
affected by atmospheric composition (e.g., Govaerts et al. 1999, Gobron et
al. 1999). More generally, the advent of new sensors and the implementation
of advanced algorithms of information extraction will yield new or better
characterizations of land surface processes (e.g., Pinty et al. 1999), which, in
turn, will lead to more accurate forecasts or descriptions of our environment.
The next few years should thus prove quite exciting, both from the
technological and scientific point of view. For instance, the European Space
Agency (ESA) is currently planning a new series of Earth Explorer missions,
which are small to medium size space platforms with one or a few
instruments to support focused scientific applications. One such mission
currently under study is the Land Surface Processes and Interactions Mission
(LSPIM). It would permit to better understand biosphere-atmosphere
interactions and land surface processes, as well as help addressing scaling
issues which are so critical to transfer the understanding one derives from
local field studies to the regional scales that are relevant to address climate
change and environmental degradation problems.
New applications of satellite remote sensing will likely develop in a
variety of fields, and these should spawn a number of value-added
operational activities (Glackin 1999). This progressive evolution closer to
applications and users will probably change in some profound ways the
research and development activities in satellite remote sensing. At the same
time, the improved capability to address some of the issues raised in LSP
studies and the progressive use of information on the state of our
environment should justify, a posteriori, the investments made in the recent
past as well as those that are still needed to bring these projects to fruition. A
clear demonstration of the benefits that can be derived from the analysis of
multi-angular and multi-spectral data, such as those that will be generated by
MISR, is thus critical for this field.
TECHNOLOGIES AND ALGORITHMS TO LAND SURFACE
PROCESSES STUDIES
75
such data are much more apt at effectively constraining the inversion
problem and limiting the number of solutions which can acceptably account
for the observed variations in spectral and directional reflectance (e.g.,
Martonchik et al. 1998a, Martonchik et al. 1998b, Knyazikhin et al. 1998).
Thus, technological advances in aerospace and computer technologies
will allow the acquisition of data under much better defined observation
protocols, and recent theoretical and simulation achievements will permit to
take better advantage of these new measurements. For instance, the
observation of the reflectance of the Earth in the blue spectral region has
already permitted the development and implementation of a new generation
of spectral indices optimized to characterize the surface without being too
affected by atmospheric composition (e.g., Govaerts et al. 1999, Gobron et
al. 1999). More generally, the advent of new sensors and the implementation
of advanced algorithms of information extraction will yield new or better
characterizations of land surface processes (e.g., Pinty et al. 1999), which, in
turn, will lead to more accurate forecasts or descriptions of our environment.
The next few years should thus prove quite exciting, both from the
technological and scientific point of view. For instance, the European Space
Agency (ESA) is currently planning a new series of Earth Explorer missions,
which are small to medium size space platforms with one or a few
instruments to support focused scientific applications. One such mission
currently under study is the Land Surface Processes and Interactions Mission
(LSPIM). It would permit to better understand biosphere-atmosphere
interactions and land surface processes, as well as help addressing scaling
issues which are so critical to transfer the understanding one derives from
local field studies to the regional scales that are relevant to address climate
change and environmental degradation problems.
New applications of satellite remote sensing will likely develop in a
variety of fields, and these should spawn a number of value-added
operational activities (Glackin 1999). This progressive evolution closer to
applications and users will probably change in some profound ways the
research and development activities in satellite remote sensing. At the same
time, the improved capability to address some of the issues raised in LSP
studies and the progressive use of information on the state of our
environment should justify, a posteriori, the investments made in the recent
past as well as those that are still needed to bring these projects to fruition. A
clear demonstration of the benefits that can be derived from the analysis of
multi-angular and multi-spectral data, such as those that will be generated by
MISR, is thus critical for this field.