A Comprehensive Survey of Deep Learning in Remote Sensing: Theories, Tools and Challenges for the Community

In recent years, deep learning (DL), a re-branding of neural networks (NNs), has risen to the top in numerous areas, namely computer vision (CV), speech recognition, natural language processing, etc. Whereas remote sensing (RS) possesses a number of unique challenges, primarily related to sensors and applications, inevitably RS draws from many of the same theories as CV; e.g., statistics, fusion, and machine learning, to name a few. This means that the RS community should be aware of, if not at the leading edge of, of advancements like DL. Herein, we provide the most comprehensive survey of state-of-the-art RS DL research. We also review recent new developments in the DL field that can be used in DL for RS. Namely, we focus on theories, tools and challenges for the RS community. Specifically, we focus on unsolved challenges and opportunities as it relates to (i) inadequate data sets, (ii) human-understandable solutions for modelling physical phenomena, (iii) Big Data, (iv) non-traditional heterogeneous data sources, (v) DL architectures and learning algorithms for spectral, spatial and temporal data, (vi) transfer learning, (vii) an improved theoretical understanding of DL systems, (viii) high barriers to entry, and (ix) training and optimizing the DL.Comment: 64 pages, 411 references. To appear in Journal of Applied Remote Sensin

Learnable Reconstruction Methods from RGB Images to Hyperspectral Imaging: A Survey

Hyperspectral imaging enables versatile applications due to its competence in capturing abundant spatial and spectral information, which are crucial for identifying substances. However, the devices for acquiring hyperspectral images are expensive and complicated. Therefore, many alternative spectral imaging methods have been proposed by directly reconstructing the hyperspectral information from lower-cost, more available RGB images. We present a thorough investigation of these state-of-the-art spectral reconstruction methods from the widespread RGB images. A systematic study and comparison of more than 25 methods has revealed that most of the data-driven deep learning methods are superior to prior-based methods in terms of reconstruction accuracy and quality despite lower speeds. This comprehensive review can serve as a fruitful reference source for peer researchers, thus further inspiring future development directions in related domains

A Spectral-Spatial Jointed Spectral Super-Resolution and Its Application to HJ-1A Satellite Images

To generate a high-spatial-resolution hyperspectral (HHS) image from a high-spatial-resolution multispectral (HMS) image, both spatial information and spectral information should be considered simultaneously if we want to build a more accurate mapping from HMS to HHS. To this end, a spectral and spatial jointed spectral super-resolution method is proposed in this letter using an end-to-end learning strategy for each subspace with the cluster-based multibranch backpropagation neural network (BPNN). More specifically, in addition to the spectra similarity, a modified superpixel segmentation is introduced to jointly take spatial contextual information into account, and a new framework with it is given. Comparisons on the Columbia University Automated Vision Environment (CAVE) data set show that our proposed method outperforms other relative state-of-the-art methods more than 0.3 in the root mean squared error (RMSE) and more than 1.0 in the spectral angle mapper (SAM) index. Especially, an exemplary application is demonstrated using the synchronized observation data collected by the multispectral and hyperspectral sensors mounted on the HJ-1A satellite at the same time

Per-channel regularization for regression-based spectral reconstruction

Spectral reconstruction algorithms seek to recover spectra from RGB images. This estimation problem is often formulated as least-squares regression, and a Tikhonov regularization is generally incorporated, both to support stable estimation in the presence of noise and to prevent over-fitting. The degree of regularization is controlled by a single penalty-term parameter, which is often selected using the cross validation experimental methodology. In this paper, we generalize the simple regularization approach to admit a per-spectral-channel optimization setting, and a modified cross-validation procedure is developed. Experiments validate our method. Compared to the conventional regularization, our per-channel approach significantly improves the reconstruction accuracy at multiple spectral channels, by up to 17% increments for all the considered models

Deep learning in remote sensing: a review

Standing at the paradigm shift towards data-intensive science, machine learning techniques are becoming increasingly important. In particular, as a major breakthrough in the field, deep learning has proven as an extremely powerful tool in many fields. Shall we embrace deep learning as the key to all? Or, should we resist a 'black-box' solution? There are controversial opinions in the remote sensing community. In this article, we analyze the challenges of using deep learning for remote sensing data analysis, review the recent advances, and provide resources to make deep learning in remote sensing ridiculously simple to start with. More importantly, we advocate remote sensing scientists to bring their expertise into deep learning, and use it as an implicit general model to tackle unprecedented large-scale influential challenges, such as climate change and urbanization.Comment: Accepted for publication IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Magazin