联合主被动遥感数据定量评价林下植被对叶面积指数估算的影响

天然森林具有冠层和林下植被(即灌丛、草地)的垂直立体结构,准确、定量地分离林下植被对于改善森林冠层叶面积指数反演精度具有重要的科学意义和实用价值。传统被动光学遥感数据由于在直接获取三维信息方面存在局限性,联合主被动的航空激光雷达(ALS)和高光谱数据(HyMap),以美国华盛顿州植物园为重点研究区,首先在单木分割的基础上实现了森林的垂直分层(即森林冠层和林下植被层)。在此基础上,利用森林冠层激光点云数据对光学影像数据进行林下植被信息剔除。通过对比利用航空光学影像和地面实测得到的森林有效叶面积指数结果发现:①森林郁闭度对于ALS数据的穿透性具有显著影响;②去除林下植被信息能够有效改善森林冠层有效叶面积指数(LAIe)估算精度。通过剔除林下植被信息,植被指数(NDVI)与地面实测有效叶面积指数的相关性由0.087提升到0.591。此外,基于剔除林下植被信息的光学遥感影像,与简单比值植被指数(SR)(相关性由0.209提升到0.559)和简化简单比例植被指数(RSR)(相关性由0.147提升到0.358)相比,归一化植被指数(NDVI)对冠层叶面积指数的变化最为敏感(相关性提高0.5)。本研究所提出的联合主被动遥感数据定量分离林下植被的方法能够有效地改善森林冠层叶面积指数的反演精度,为准确定量地估算森林生物物理参数和研究碳、水循环过程提供坚实的基础。     

基于激光雷达的大兴安岭典型森林生物量制图技术研究

森林生物量作为森林生态系统基本的数量表征,表明了森林的经营水平和开发利用价值,并能反映其与环境在物质循环和能量流动方面的复杂关系。同时,森林生物量也是林业问题和生态问题研究的基础。以内蒙古大兴安岭国家野外生态站为研究区域,通过对机载激光雷达(LiDAR)点云数据的预处理,利用计算机编程提取LiDAR点云数据的结构参数,以植被分位数高度变量与密度变量为自变量,结合地面调查数据,建立生物量与LiDAR结构参数的回归模型(决定系数为0.69,均方根误差为0.34)。运用IDL编程对LiDAR点云块数据进行运算并生成分辨率为20m×20m的栅格图像,拼接后得到整个区域的地上生物量分布图,对生成的地上生物量分布图进行验证的R2为0.78,RMSE为23.09t/hm2,平均估测精度达83%。     

基于ETM和图像融合的优势植被冠层叶面积指数和消光系数的遥感反演

叶面积指数和消光系数是表征植被群体冠层结构及光能利用的地球表层下垫面参量,国内外对叶面积指数的遥感反演有较多的研究与应用,但对消光系数的遥感反演尚不多见。我国南方少见单一大面积的均匀植被分布。为更好地匹配叶面积指数和光合有效辐射(用于估算消光系数)的实测数据,反映植被混交和疏密不均的状态,以Landsat ETM作为遥感信息源,通过HSV、Brovey和Gram-Schmidt(GS)3种图像融合方法的比较,选取效果最佳的图像融合方法,将ETM融合成空间分辨率为15 m的多光谱数据。以鄱阳湖源头梅江流域为研究区,在实测优势植被叶面积指数和光合有效辐射的基础上,利用植被指数法经验公式法反演流域的叶面积指数,并根据Beer-Lambert定律,建立了流域优势植被冠层消光系数的反演模型。在此基础上,反演了流域植被冠层叶面积指数和消光系数的空间分布,为SWAT植物生长模式的修正提供输入数据基础。     

联合无人机激光雷达和高光谱数据反演玉米叶面积指数

叶面积指数（Leaf Area Index, LAI）是作物长势监测及产量估算的重要指标,准确高效的LAI反演对农田经济的宏观管理具有重要作用。研究探索了联合无人机激光雷达（Light Detec-tion and Ranging, LiDAR） 和高光谱数据反演玉米叶面积指数的潜力,并分析了LiDAR数据不同采样尺寸、高度阈值、点密度对LAI反演精度的影响同时确定三者的最优值。该研究分别从重采样的LiDAR数据和高光谱影像中提取了LiDAR变量和植被指数,然后基于偏最小二乘回归（Partial Least Square Regression,PLSR）和随机森林（Random Forest, RF） 回归两种算法分别利用LiDAR变量、植被指数、联合LiDAR变量和植被指数构建预测模型,并确定反演玉米LAI的最优预测模型。结果表明：反演玉米LAI的最优采样尺寸、高度阈值、点密度分别为5.5 m、0.55 m、18 points/m²,研究发现最高的点密度（420 points/m²）并没有产生最优的玉米LAI反演精度,因此单独依靠增加点密度的方法提高LAI的反演精度并不可靠。基于LiDAR变量获得的LAI反演精度（PLSR：R²=0.874,RMSE=0.317;RF：R²=0.942,RMSE=0.222）高于基于植被指数获得的LAI反演精度（PLSR： R²=0.741,RMSE=0.454;RF：R²=0.861,RMSE=0.338）,而使用组合变量构建预测模型的反演精度（PLSR：R²=0.885, RMSE=0.304;RF：R²=0.950,RMSE=0.203）优于使用单一变量建立的LAI预测模型,其中利用联合LiDAR变量和植被指数建立的随机森林回归模型为最优预测模型。因此,将两种数据源融合在提高植被LAI反演精度方面具有一定的潜力。     

基于ICESat-GLAS数据估算复杂地形区域森林蓄积量潜力初探-以云南香格里拉县为例

近年来ICESat\|GLAS波形数据被广泛地应用于森林生态参数的估算。为了研究大光斑激光雷达数据在复杂地形区域估算森林蓄积量方面的能力,以云南省香格里拉县为研究区域,将GLA01数据处理后得到的平均树高与实测树高及坡度进行对比,探究了坡度对GLAS数据估算平均树高的影响,同时将其与平均树高、光斑范围内森林蓄积量建立关系,初步研究三者之间的关系。结果表明,坡度会降低大光斑激光雷达数据估算森林植被高度的精度,但GLAS数据估算出的树高与实测的平均树高、蓄积量数据仍有较好的相关性,这说明利用GLAS数据估算森林蓄积量有较大的潜力。     

基于无人机激光雷达的森林冠层高度分析——以祁连山东、中部青海云杉为例

快速准确获取森林结构参数对森林资源调查管理及全球碳汇研究具有重要意义。以祁连山东、中部青海云杉林为研究对象,利用16个无人机激光雷达(LiDAR)点云数据、正射影像数据结合实地样方观测数据,提取样方内青海云杉的单木树高并准确验证树木分割精度;结合实测数据和地形数据,依据统计指标验证提取树高精度并分析原因;基于点云数据提取的各样方树高分析祁连山青海云杉冠层高度在空间上的变化。结果表明:在祁连山山地森林,冠层高度平均值估算精度最高,R~2为0.93,RMSE为1.39 m(P0.05);地形影响基于点云数据的树高提取,坡度较小的青海云杉树高提取效果更好;从东到西,青海云杉平均树高呈下降趋势;随着海拔高度上升,青海云杉的平均树高先上升后下降,这与祁连山东西水热条件差异和不同海拔树木年龄分布有关。     

基于机载LVIS和星载GLAS波形LiDAR数据反演森林LAI

波形激光雷达（Light Detection And Ranging, LiDAR）已经大量用于森林叶面积指数（Leaf Area Index, LAI）估算,但是波形LiDAR数据估算森林LAI易受地形影响。地形坡度引起的波形展宽使得地面回波和植被冠层回波信息混合在一起,难以得到准确的地面回波和冠层回波,进而影响到LAI估算精度。为了估算不同地形坡度条件下的LAI,本文采用一种坡度自适应的方法处理机载LVIS和星载GLAS波形数据。通过坡度自适应的方法得到地面波峰位置,基于高度阈值来区分地面回波和冠层回波,进而得到能量比值用于LAI估算。基于LVIS和GLAS数据,估算了不同森林站点的LAI,并利用实测LAI数据进行检验。结果表明：利用波形LiDAR数据可以估算森林LAI,坡度自适应方法可以改善地形的影响,提高LAI估算精度。对于机载LVIS,估算新英格兰森林LAI精度为R²=0.77和RMSE=0.21;对于星载GLAS,估算塞罕坝森林LAI精度为R²=0.81和RMSE=0.28。无论机载还是星载数据,该方法都有着较高的精度,对于复杂地形估算LAI具有一定潜力。     

基于森林密度的相位与幅度联合反演算法

森林树高的反演是极化干涉合成孔径雷达(polarimetric SAR interferometry,PolInSAR)领域研究的热点。已有研究表明森林密度会对树高反演精度产生较大影响,但传统算法没有考虑森林密度的影响。针对这一现象,首先利用模拟数据分析森林密度对传统森林树高反演算法的影响;然后根据影响的特点提出一种基于森林密度的相位与幅度联合反演算法;最后采用德国宇航局与瑞典国防研究局机载E-SAR系统获取的PolInSAR数据对文中所用算法进行了实验分析。结果表明,该算法比传统算法反演精度更高,验证了算法的可靠性和有效性。由此可见,森林密度是森林重要的森林物理参数,通过引入森林密度,明显提升了树高反演的效果,说明引入密度参数的重要性。     

机载大光斑激光雷达数据估测森林结构参数研究进展

针对LiDAR对森林结构具有较强探测能力,从而能够准确地获取森林的三维结构的优势,该文试图将该技术运用于估测森林结构参数,并介绍了机载大光斑LiDAR系统的工作原理和主要技术规格,系统总结了机载大光斑LiDAR数据估测森林结构参数的研究现状,分析了机载大光斑LiDAR估测森林结构参数的局限性并对其进行了展望。     

结合GLAS和TM卫星数据的江西省森林高度和生物量制图

针对光学遥感受云雨天气的影响,并存在植被指数饱和、穿透性差而难以到达森林冠层以下等问题,不能有效反映植被垂直结构信息,难以准确地反演森林地上生物量,以大光斑激光雷达GLAS数据、Landsat TM光学遥感影像数据以及野外实测数据为数据源,建立了江西省森林的平均冠层高度模型和森林生物量模型。结果表明:GLAS数据提取出波形特征参数、ASTER GDEM数据提取出地形特征参数与实测树高数据建立森林冠层高度模型,获取离散的林冠高度,可以较好消除地形对GLAS波形的影响;通过建立Landsat TM数据计算的NDVI与离散林冠高度之间的关系,可以进行大尺度连续森林冠层高度的制图;并利用林冠高度与森林生物量之间的幂函数关系估算森林生物量。因此,大光斑激光雷达GLAS数据与光学遥感数据联合,能充分发挥多源遥感的优势,实现连续冠层高度和森林生物量的反演。     

Modeling airborne laser scanning data for the spatial generation of critical forest parameters in fire behavior modeling

Methods for using airborne laser scanning (also called airborne LIDAR) to retrieve forest parameters that are critical for fire behavior modeling are presented. A model for the automatic extraction of forest information is demonstrated to provide spatial coverage of the study area, making it possible to produce 3-D inputs to improve fire behavior models.The Toposys I airborne laser system recorded the last return of each footprint (0.30-0.38 m) over a 2000 m by 190 m flight line. Raw data were transformed into height above the surface, eliminating the effect of terrain on vegetation height and allowing separation of ground surface and crown heights. Data were defined as ground elevation if heights were less than 0.6 m. A cluster analysis was used to discriminate crown base height, allowing identification of both tree and understory canopy heights. Tree height was defined as the 99 percentile of the tree crown height group, while crown base height was the 1 percentile of the tree crown height group. Tree cover (TC) was estimated from the fraction of total tree laser hits relative to the total number of laser hits. Surface canopy (SC) height was computed as the 99 percentile of the surface canopy group. Surface canopy cover is equal to the fraction of total surface canopy hits relative to the total number of hits, once the canopy height profile (CHP) was corrected. Crown bulk density (CBD) was obtained from foliage biomass (FB) estimate and crown volume (CV), using an empirical equation for foliage biomass. Crown volume was estimated as the crown area times the crown height after a correction for mean canopy cover.     

Estimating zero-plane displacement height and aerodynamic roughness length using synthesis of LiDAR and SPOT-5 data

In this study, a combination of low and high density airborne LiDAR and satellite SPOT-5 HRG data were used in conjunction with ground measurements of forest structure to parameterize four models for zero-plane displacement height d(m) and aerodynamic roughness length z_0m(m), over cool-temperate forests in Heihe River basin, an arid region of Northwest China. For the whole study area, forest structural parameters including tree height (Ht) (m), first branch height (FBH) (m), crown width (CW) (m) and stand density (SD)(trees ha^− 1) were derived by stepwise multiple linear regressions of ground-based forest measurements and height quantiles and fractional canopy cover (f_c) derived from the low density LiDAR data. The high density LiDAR data, which covered a much smaller area than the low density LiDAR data, were used to relate SPOT-5's reflectance to the effective plant area index (PAIe) of the forest. This was done by linear spectrum decomposition and Li-Strahler geometric-optical models. The result of the SPOT-5 spectrum decomposition was applied to the whole area to calculate PAIe (and leaf area index LAI). Then, four roughness models were applied to the study area with these vegetation data derived from the LiDAR and SPOT-5 as input. For validation, measurements at an eddy covariance site in the study area were used. Finally, the four models were compared by plotting histograms of the accumulative distribution of modeled d and z_0m in the study area. The results showed that the model using by frontal area index (FAI) produced best d estimate, and the model using both LAI and FAI generated the best z_0m. Furthermore, all models performed much better when the representative tree height was Lorey's mean height instead of using an arithmetic mean.     

Extracting forest canopy structure from spatial information of high resolution optical imagery: tree crown size versus leaf area index

Leaves are the primary interface where energy, water and carbon exchanges occur between the forest ecosystems and the atmosphere. Leaf area index (LAI) is a measure of the amount of leaf area in a stand, and the tree crown size characterizes how leaves are clumped in the canopy. Both LAI and tree crown size are of essential ecological and management value. There is a lot of interest in extracting both canopy structural parameters from remote sensing. The LAI is generally estimated with spectral information from remotely sensed images at relatively coarse spatial resolution. There has been much less success in estimating tree crown size with remote sensing. The recent availability of abundant high spatial resolution imagery from space offers new potential for extracting LAI and tree crown size, particularly in the spatial domain. This study found that the spatial information in Ikonos imagery is highly valuable in estimating both tree crown size and LAI. When the conifer‐ and hardwood‐dominated stands are pooled, tree crown sizes of conifer stands relate best to the ratio of image variance at 2×2 m spatial resolution to that at 3×3 m spatial resolution, while LAI relates best to image variance at 4×4 m spatial resolution. When the conifer‐ and hardwood‐dominated stands are separated, image spatial information estimates tree crown size much better for conifer‐dominated stands than for the hardwood‐dominated stands, while the relationship between image spatial information and LAI is strengthened after the two types of stands are combined. Tree crown size is more sensitive to image spatial resolution than LAI. Image variance is more useful in estimating LAI than normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and simple ratio vegetation index (SRVI). Combining both spatial and spectral information provides some improvement in estimating LAI compared with using spatial information alone. Therefore, future efforts to estimate canopy structure with high resolution imagery should also use image spatial information.     

Delineation of individual deciduous trees in plantations with low-density LiDAR data

Delineation of individual deciduous trees with Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data has long been sought for accurate forest inventory in temperate forests. Previous attempts mainly focused on high-density LiDAR data to obtain reliable delineation results, which may have limited applications due to the high cost and low availability of such data. Here, the feasibility of individual deciduous tree delineation with low-density LiDAR data was examined using a point-density-based algorithm. First a high-resolution point density model (PDM) was developed from low-density LiDAR point cloud to locate individual trees through the horizontal spatial distribution of LiDAR points. Then, individual tree crowns and associated attributes were delineated with a 2D marker-controlled watershed segmentation. Additionally, the PDM-based approach was compared with a conventional canopy height model (CHM) based delineation. The results demonstrated that the PDM-based approach produced an 89% detection accuracy to identify deciduous trees in our study area. The tree attributes derived from the PDM-based algorithm explained 81% and 83% of tree height and crown width variations of forest stands, respectively. The conventional CHM-based tree attributes, on the other hand, could explain only 71% and 66% of tree height and crown width, respectively. Our results suggest that the application of the PDM-based individual tree identification in deciduous forests with low-density LiDAR data is feasible and has relatively high accuracy to predict tree height and crown width, which are highly desired in large-scale forest inventory and analysis.     

Quantifying the spatial properties of forest canopy gaps using LiDAR imagery and GIS

The spatial properties of gaps have an important influence upon the regeneration dynamics and species composition of forests. However, such properties can be difficult to quantify over large spatial areas using field measurements. This research considers how we conceptualize and define forest canopy gaps from a remote sensing point of view and highlights the inadequacies of passive optical remotely sensed data for delineating gaps. The study employs the analytical functions of a geographical information system to extract gap spatial characteristics from imagery acquired by an active remote sensing device, an airborne light detection and ranging instrument (LiDAR). These techniques were applied to an area of semi-natural broadleaved deciduous forest, in order to map gap size, shape complexity, vegetation height diversity and gap connectivity. A vegetation cover map derived from imagery from an airborne multispectral scanner was used in combination with the LiDAR data to characterize the dominant vegetation types within gaps. Although the quantification of these gap characteristics alone is insufficient to provide conclusive evidence on specific processes, the paper demonstrates how such information can be indicative of the general status of a forest and can provide new perspectives and possibilities or further ecological research and forest monitoring activities.     

Fusion of LiDAR and imagery for estimating forest canopy fuels

Due to increased fuel loading as a result of fire suppression, land managers in the American west are in need of precise information about the fuels they manage, including canopy fuels. Canopy fuel metrics such as canopy height (CH), canopy base height (CBH), canopy bulk density (CBD) and available canopy fuel (ACF) are specific inputs for wildfire behavior models such as FARSITE and emission models such as FOFEM. With finer spatial resolution data, accurate quantification of these metrics with detailed spatial heterogeneity can be accomplished. Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and color near-infrared imagery are active and passive systems, respectively, that have been utilized for measuring a range of forest structure characteristics at high resolution. The objective of this research was to determine which remote sensing dataset can estimate canopy fuels more accurately and whether a fusion of these datasets produces more accurate estimates. Regression models were developed for ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) stand representative of eastern Washington State using field data collected in the Ahtanum State Forest and metrics derived from LiDAR and imagery. Strong relationships were found with LiDAR alone and LiDAR was found to increase canopy fuel accuracy compared to imagery. Fusing LiDAR with imagery and/or LiDAR intensity led to small increases in estimation accuracy over LiDAR alone. By improving the ability to estimate canopy fuels at higher spatial resolutions, spatially explicit fuel layers can be created and used in wildfire behavior and smoke emission models leading to more accurate estimations of crown fire risk and smoke related emissions.     

Estimating structural properties of riparian forests with airborne lidar data

Riparian forest zones adjacent to surface water such as streams, lakes, reservoirs and wetlands maintain significant forest ecosystem functions including nutrient cycling, vegetative communities, water quality, fish and wildlife habitat and landscape aesthetics. In order to support the sustainable management of riparian forests, riparian zones should first be carefully delineated and then structural properties of riparian vegetation, especially forest trees, should be accurately measured. Geographical information system (GIS) techniques have been previously implemented to determine riparian zones quickly and reliably. However, basic measurements of forest structures in riparian areas have relied heavily on field-based surveys, which can be extremely time consuming in large areas. In this study, riparian forest zones were initially located using GIS techniques and then airborne lidar (light detection and ranging) data were used to determine and analyse structural properties (i.e. tree height, crown diameter, canopy closure and vegetation density) of a sample riparian forest. Lidar-derived tree height and crown diameter measurements of sample trees were compared with field-based measurements. Results indicated that 77.92% of the riparian area in the study area was covered by forest. Based on lidar-derived data, the average tree height, total crown width, canopy closure (above 3 m) and vegetation density (3–15 m) were found to be 74.72 m, 16.82 m, 71.15% and 26.05%, respectively. Although we found differences between measurement methods, lidar-derived riparian tree measurements were highly correlated with field measurements for tree height (R ²?=?88%) and crown width (R ²?=?92%). Differences between measurement methods were likely a result of difficulties associated with field measurements in the dense vegetation that is often associated with forested riparian areas.     

Retrieval of forest canopy attributes based on a geometric-optical model using airborne LiDAR and optical remote-sensing data

In the retrieval of forest canopy attributes using a geometric-optical model, the spectral scene reflectance of each component should be known as prior knowledge. Generally, these reflectances were acquired by a foregone survey using an analytical spectral device. This article purposed to retrieve the forest structure parameters using light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data, and used a linear spectrum decomposition model to determine the reflectances of the spectral scene components, which are regarded as prior knowledge in the retrieval of forest canopy cover and effective plant area index (PAI_e) using a simplified Li–Strahler geometric-optical model based on a Satellites Pour l'Observation de la Terre 5 (SPOT-5) high-resolution geometry (HRG) image. The airborne LiDAR data are first used to retrieve the forest structure parameters and then the proportion of the SPOT pixel not covered by crown or shadow K_g of each pixel in the sample was calculated, which was used to extract the reflectances of the spectral scene components by a linear spectrum decomposition model. Finally, the forest canopy cover and PAI_e are retrieved by the geometric-optical model. As the acquired time of SPOT-5 image and measured data has a discrepancy of about 2 months, the retrieved result of forest canopy cover needs a further validation. The relatively high value of R ² between the retrieval result of PAI_e and the measurements indicates the efficiency of our methods.     

Characterizing forest ecological structure using pulse types and heights of airborne laser scanning

Characterizing forest structure is an important part of any comprehensive biodiversity assessment. However, current methods for measuring structural complexity require a laborious process that involves many logistically expensive point based measurements. An automated or semi-automated method would be ideal. In this study, the utility of airborne laser scanning (LiDAR; Light Detection and Ranging) for characterizing the ecological structure of a forest landscape is examined. The innovation of this paper is to use different laser pulse return properties from a full waveform LiDAR to characterize forest ecological structure. First the LiDAR dataset is stratified into four vertical layers: ground, low vegetation (0-1 m from the ground), medium vegetation (1-5 m from the ground) and high vegetation (> 5 m). Subsequently the “Type” of LiDAR return is analysed: Type 1 (singular returns); Type 2 (first of many returns); Type 3 (intermediate returns); and Type 4 (last of many returns). A forest characterization scheme derived from LiDAR point clouds is proposed. A validation of the scheme is then presented using a network of field sites that recorded commonly used metrics of biodiversity. The proposed forest characterization categories allow for quantification of gaps (above bare ground, low vegetation and medium vegetation), canopy cover and its vertical density as well as the presence of various canopy strata (low, medium and high). Regression analysis showed that LiDAR derived variables were good predictors of field recorded variables (R² = 0.82, P < 0.05 between LiDAR derived presence of low vegetation and field derived LAI for low vegetation). The proposed scheme clearly shows the potential of full waveform LiDAR to provide information on the complexity of habitat structure.