Hyperspectral change detection: an experimental comparative study

ABSTRACT

The Earth’s surface is constantly changing due to variations originating from the increasing human population. In the last decade, numerous methods were presented in the literature for change detection using multispectral image data. Owing to the increasing availability of hyperspectral images, these methods are now being applied to hyperspectral images. The main objective of this study is to present different change detection methods in hyperspectral imagery. Numerous algorithms (more than 43 algorithms) have been proposed for change detection in hyperspectral imagery over the last decade. In this work, we provide a comparative review of these algorithms through experimental results. We place the algorithms in five major groups: (1) match-based, (2) transformation-based, (3) direct classification-based, (4) post-classification-based, and (5) hybrid-based. We evaluate and compare the performances of all five groups using two real-world data sets of multi-temporal hyperspectral imagery. This comparative study investigates the advantages and disadvantages of the effects of preprocessing steps in the efficiency of the hyperspectral change detection (HSCD) methods. These preprocessing steps are considered in four scenarios, including: (1) considering only spatial or geometric correction without noise reduction and spectral correction; (2) spatial, atmospheric, and radiometric corrections without noise reduction; (3) spatial correction and noise reduction without atmospheric and radiometric corrections; and (4) spatial, atmospheric, and radiometric correction with noise reduction. The empirical results, followed by a summary of the pros and cons of each algorithm, aim to help researchers select the procedures with the best characteristics for HSCD applications.