Remote Sensing of Vegetation: Principles, Techniques, and Applications

Remote sensing is becoming an increasingly important tool for agriculturalists, ecologists, and land managers for the study of Earth's agricultural and natural vegetation, and can be applied to further our understanding of key environmental issues, including climate change and ecosystem management.

This book offers an accessible yet rigorous treatment of the basics of remote sensing at all scales, illustrating its practical application to the study of vegetation. Despite a quantitative approach, the advanced mathematics and complex models common in modern remote sensing literature is demystified through clear explanations that emphasise the key underlying principles, and the core physical aspects are explained in the biological context of vegetation and its adaptation to its specific environment.

"Jones and Vaughan provide an excellent introduction to a growing transdisciplinary field of inquiry and practice-- one that should find its way into many a syllabus." -- Bioscience

PREFACE;
LIST OF SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS;
1. Introduction;
2. Basics of radiation physics for remote sensing of vegetation; 3. Radiative properties of vegetation, soils and water;
4. Plant and canopy function;
5. Earth observation systems;
6. Preparation and manipulation of data;
7. Spectral sensing of vegetation properties;
8. Multiangular sensing of vegetation structure and modelling of radiation transfer properties;
9. Remote sensing of canopy mass and heat exchange;
10. Sampling, error and scaling;
11. Integrated applications;
REFERENCES;
USEFUL WEBSITES;
APPENDICES;
ANSWERS TO SAMPLE QUESTIONS;
INDEX