Ultra low-level airborne (ULLA) sensing of crop canopy reflectance: A case study using a CropCircle™ sensor

Author(s)
Lamb, David
Trotter, Mark
Schneider, Derek
Publication Date
2009
Abstract
Operational airborne and satellite remote sensing in agriculture remains constrained by matching platform availability to suitable daytime weather and illumination conditions, crop development, and availability of ground staff. An ultra low-level aircraft carrying an active NIR/Red CropCircle™ sensor was successfully deployed to record and subsequently map crop vigour via the simple ratio (SR) index over a field of sorghum. Given the logging frequency of ≈20 Hz and the presence of alternate rows of bare soil, the Moiré effect reduced the contrast between crop and bare soil skip-rows. Such effects would not be expected to occur in non-skip-row crops. The ultra low-level airborne (ULLA)-SR map derived from the 20 m transect records compared favorably with the SR map derived from a meter-resolution airborne digital multispectral image that was re-sampled to a similar spatial resolution. This case study, involving a CropCircle™ sensor mounted in a low-level aircraft demonstrates another deployment option for users of this class of sensor. Moreover, an ULLA configuration offers the potential for greater flexibility in scheduling compared to airborne imaging, given it can be flown at any sun-angle, under cloud, at night, and may easily be incorporated into aircraft already conducting low-level operations, for example crop dusting and reconnaissance, over agricultural fields.
Citation
Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, 69(1), p. 86-91
ISSN
1872-7107
0168-1699
Link
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Title
Ultra low-level airborne (ULLA) sensing of crop canopy reflectance: A case study using a CropCircle™ sensor
Type of document
Journal Article
Entity Type
Publication

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