Skip to main content

spectral indices. Remote sensing

The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is a numerical indicator that uses the red and near-infrared spectral bands. NDVI is highly associated with vegetation content. High NDVI values correspond to areas that reflect more in the near-infrared spectrum. Higher reflectance in the near-infrared correspond to denser and healthier vegetation.
Formula
NDVI = (NIR – Red) / (NIR + Red)
NDVI (Landsat 8) = (B5 – B4) / (B5 + B4)

Green Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (GNDVI):
Green Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (GNDVI) is modified version of NDVI to be more sensitive to the variation of chlorophyll content in the crop. " The highest correlation values with leaf N content and DM were obtained with the GNDVI index in all data acquisition periods and both experimental phases. … GNDVI was more sensible than NDVI to identify different concentration rates of chlorophyll, which is highly correlated at nitrogen, in two species of plants." (Gitelson et al. 1996)

Formula of GNDVI = (NIR-GREEN) /(NIR+GREEN)
GNDVI (Landsat 8) = (B5 – B3) / (B5 + B3)

Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI):
EVI is similar to Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and can be used to quantify vegetation greenness. However, EVI corrects for some atmospheric conditions and canopy background noise and is more sensitive in areas with dense vegetation. It incorporates an "L" value to adjust for canopy background, "C" values as coefficients for atmospheric resistance, and values from the blue band (B).  These enhancements allow for index calculation as a ratio between the R and NIR values, while reducing the background noise, atmospheric noise, and saturation in most cases (USGS, 2019).

Formula of EVI = G * ((NIR – R) / (NIR + C1 * R – C2 * B + L))
EVI (Landsat 8) = 2.5 * ((B5 – B4) / (B5 + 6 * B4 – 7.5 * B2 + 1))

Advanced Vegetation Index (AVI):
Advanced Vegetation Index (AVI) is a numerical indicator, similar to NDVI, that uses the red and near-infrared spectral bands. Like NDVI, AVI is used in vegetation studies to monitor crop and forest variations over time. Through the multi-temporal combination of the AVI and the NDVI, users can discriminate different types of vegetation and extract phenology characteristics/parameters (GU, 2019).

Formula of AVI = [NIR * (1-Red) * (NIR-Red)] 1/3
AVI (Landsat 8) = [B5 * (1 – B4)*(B5 – B4)]1/3

Soil Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI):
SAVI is used to correct Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) for the influence of soil brightness in areas where vegetative cover is low. Landsat Surface Reflectance-derived SAVI is calculated as a ratio between the R and NIR values with a soil brightness correction factor (L) defined as 0.5 to accommodate most land cover types (USGS, 2019).

Formula of SAVI = ((NIR – R) / (NIR + R + L)) * (1 + L)
SAVI (Landsat 8) = ((B5 – B4) / (B5+ B4 + 0.5)) * (1.5)

Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI):
NDMI is used to determine vegetation water content. It is calculated as a ratio between the NIR and SWIR values in traditional fashion (USGS, 2019).

Formula of NDMI = (NIR – SWIR) / (NIR + SWIR)
NDMI (Landsat 8) = (B5 – B6) / (B5 + B6)

Moisture Stress Index (MSI):
Moisture Stress Index is used for canopy stress analysis, productivity prediction and biophysical modeling. Interpretation of the MSI is inverted relative to other water vegetation indices; thus, higher values of the index indicate greater plant water stress and in inference, less soil moisture content. The values of this index range from 0 to more than 3 with the common range for green vegetation being 0.2 to 2 (Welikhe et al., 2017).
Formula of MSI = MidIR / NIR
MSI (Landsat 8) = B6 / B5

Green Coverage Index (GCI):
In remote sensing, the Green Chlorophyll Index is used to estimate the content of leaf chlorophyll in various species of plants. The chlorophyll content reflects the physiological state of vegetation; it decreases in stressed plants and can therefore be used as a measurement of plant health (EOS, 2019).
Formula of GCI = (NIR) / (Green) – 1
GCI (Landsat 8) = (B5 / B3) -1
..
Normalized Burned Ratio Index (NBRI):
Forest fires are a severe manmade or natural phenomena that destroy natural recourses, live stock, unbalances the local environments, release huge amount of Green House Gases etc. NBRI takes advantage of the near infrared and short wave infrared spectral bands, which are sensitive in vegetation changes, to detect burned areas and monitor the recovery of the ecosystem (GU, 2019).
Formula of NBR = (NIR – SWIR) / (NIR+ SWIR)
NBRI (Landsat 8) = (B5 – B7) / (B5 + B7)
..
Bare Soil Index (BSI):
Bare Soil Index (BSI) is a numerical indicator that combines blue, red, near infrared and short wave infrared spectral bands to capture soil variations. These spectral bands are used in a normalized manner. The short wave infrared and the red spectral bands are used to quantify the soil mineral composition, while the blue and the near infrared spectral bands are used to enhance the presence of vegetation (GU, 2019).

Formula of BSI = ((Red+SWIR) – (NIR+Blue)) / ((Red+SWIR) + (NIR+Blue))
BSI (Landsta 8) = (B6 + B4) – (B5 + B2) / (B6 + B4) + (B5 + B2)
BSI (Landsta 4 – 7) = (B5 + B3) – (B4 + B1) / (B5 + B3) + (B4 + B1)
BSI (Sentinel 2) = (B11 + B4) – (B8 + B2) / (B11 + B4) + (B8 + B2)
..
Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI):
Normalize Difference Water Index (NDWI) is use for the water bodies analysis. The index uses Green and Near infra-red bands of remote sensing images. The NDWI can enhance water information efficiently in most cases. It is sensitive to build-up land and result in over-estimated water bodies. The NDWI products can be used in conjunction with NDVI change products to assess context of apparent change areas (Bahadur, 2018).
Formula of NDWI = (NIR – SWIR) / (NIR + SWIR)
NDWI (Landsat 8) = (B3 – B5) / (B3 + B5)
NDWI (Landsat 4 – 7) = (B2 – B4) / (B2 + B4)
NDWI (Sentinel 2) = (B3 – B8) / (B3 + B8)
..
Normalized Difference Snow Index (NDSI):
The Normalized Difference Snow Index (NDSI) is a numerical indicator that shows snow cover over land areas. The green and short wave infrared (SWIR) spectral bands are used within this formula to map the snow cover. Since snow absorbs most of the incident radiation in the SWIR while clouds do not, this enables NDSI to distinguish snow from clouds. This formula is commonly used in snow/ice cover mapping application as well as glacier monitoring (Bluemarblegeo, 2019).
Formula of NDSI = (Green-SWIR) / (Green+SWIR)
NDSI (Landsat 8) = (B3 – B6) / (B3 + B6)
NDSI (Landsat 4 – 7) = (B2 – B5) / (B2 + B5)
NDSI (Sentinel 2) = (B3 – B11) / (B3 + B11)
...
Normalized Difference Glacier Index (NDGI):
Normalized Difference Glacier Index (NDGI) is used to help detect and monitor glaciers by using the green and red spectral bands. This equation is commonly used in glacier detection and glacier monitoring applications (Bluemarblegeo, 2019).
Formula of NDGI = (NIR-Green)/(NIR+Green)
NDGI (Landsat 8) = (B3 – B4) / (B3 + B4)
NDGI (Landsat 4 – 7) = (B2 – B3) / (B2 + B3)
NDGI (Sentinel 2) = (B3 – B4) / (B3 + B4)

Atmospherically Resistant Vegetation Index (ARVI)
As the name suggests, the Atmospherically Resistant Vegetation Index is the first vegetation index, which is relatively prone to atmospheric factors (such as aerosol). The formula of ARVI index invented by Kaufman and Tanré is basically NDVI corrected for atmospheric scattering effects in the red reflectance spectrum by using the measurements in blue wavelengths.
Formula of ARVI = (NIR – (2 * Red) + Blue) / (NIR + (2 * Red) + Blue)
..
Structure Insensitive Pigment Index (SIPI)
The Structure Insensitive Pigment Index is good for analysis of vegetation with the variable canopy structure. It estimates the ratio of carotenoids to chlorophyll: the increased value signals of stressed vegetation
Formula of SIPI = (NIR – Blue) / (NIR – Red)




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

History of GIS

The history of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is rooted in early efforts to understand spatial relationships and patterns, long before the advent of digital computers. While modern GIS emerged in the mid-20th century with advances in computing, its conceptual foundations lie in cartography, spatial analysis, and thematic mapping. Early Roots of Spatial Analysis (Pre-1960s) One of the earliest documented applications of spatial analysis dates back to  1832 , when  Charles Picquet , a French geographer and cartographer, produced a cholera mortality map of Paris. In his report  Rapport sur la marche et les effets du cholĂ©ra dans Paris et le dĂ©partement de la Seine , Picquet used graduated color shading to represent cholera deaths per 1,000 inhabitants across 48 districts. This work is widely regarded as an early example of choropleth mapping and thematic cartography applied to epidemiology. A landmark moment in the history of spatial analysis occurred in  1854 , when  John Snow  inv...

Atmospheric Window

The atmospheric window in remote sensing refers to specific wavelength ranges within the electromagnetic spectrum that can pass through the Earth's atmosphere relatively unimpeded. These windows are crucial for remote sensing applications because they allow us to observe the Earth's surface and atmosphere without significant interference from the atmosphere's constituents. Key facts and concepts about atmospheric windows: Visible and Near-Infrared (VNIR) window: This window encompasses wavelengths from approximately 0. 4 to 1. 0 micrometers. It is ideal for observing vegetation, water bodies, and land cover types. Shortwave Infrared (SWIR) window: This window covers wavelengths from approximately 1. 0 to 3. 0 micrometers. It is particularly useful for detecting minerals, water content, and vegetation health. Mid-Infrared (MIR) window: This window spans wavelengths from approximately 3. 0 to 8. 0 micrometers. It is valuable for identifying various materials, incl...

History of GIS

1. 1832 - Early Spatial Analysis in Epidemiology:    - Charles Picquet creates a map in Paris detailing cholera deaths per 1,000 inhabitants.    - Utilizes halftone color gradients for visual representation. 2. 1854 - John Snow's Cholera Outbreak Analysis:    - Epidemiologist John Snow identifies cholera outbreak source in London using spatial analysis.    - Maps casualties' residences and nearby water sources to pinpoint the outbreak's origin. 3. Early 20th Century - Photozincography and Layered Mapping:    - Photozincography development allows maps to be split into layers for vegetation, water, etc.    - Introduction of layers, later a key feature in GIS, for separate printing plates. 4. Mid-20th Century - Computer Facilitation of Cartography:    - Waldo Tobler's 1959 publication details using computers for cartography.    - Computer hardware development, driven by nuclear weapon research, leads to broader mapping applications by early 1960s. 5. 1960 - Canada Geograph...

GIS data continuous discrete ordinal interval ratio

In Geographic Information Systems (GIS) , data is categorized based on its nature (discrete or continuous) and its measurement scale (nominal, ordinal, interval, or ratio). These distinctions influence how the data is collected, analyzed, and visualized. Let's break down these categories with concepts, terminologies, and examples: 1. Discrete Data Discrete data is obtained by counting distinct items or entities. Values are finite and cannot be infinitely subdivided. Characteristics : Represent distinct objects or occurrences. Commonly represented as vector data (points, lines, polygons). Values within a range are whole numbers or categories. Examples : Number of People : Counting individuals on a train or in a hospital. Building Types : Categorizing buildings as residential, commercial, or industrial. Tree Count : Number of trees in a specific area. 2. Continuous Data Continuous data is obtained by measuring phenomena that can take any value within a range...

Scattering

Scattering