Sea surface temperature retrieval using TRMM microwave imager satellite data in the South China Sea

The passive microwave TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI) sensor which is one of the payloads of the Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM) satellite was launched in 1997 by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA). The TMI provides daily maps, 3 day average, weekly and monthly binary data via internet that can be used to retrieve geophysical parameters such as sea surface temperature (SST), 10 meter surface wind speed using 11 GHz channel, 10 meter surface wind speed using 37 GHz channel, atmospheric water vapour, liquid cloud water and precipitation rates. The SST study over the South China Sea was carried out using the 10.7 GHz channel of the TMI. The advantage of using this data is that the SST can be measured through clouds that are nearly transparent on this channel. This is a distinct advantage over the traditional infrared SST observations that require a cloud-free field of view. In this study, multitemporal TMI binary data were processed using FORTRAN Programming Language to evaluate the SST variations with time over the study area. The 3-day, weekly and monthly binary files are similar to the daily TMI binary files. All data consists of six maps with grid size of 0.25o by 0.25o and each file can be read as a 1440, 320, 6 array. For the data processing, the data values fall between 0 and 250 that need to be scaled to obtain meaningful geophysical data. The TMI scanning system causes striping that contains 0 or invalid data. In-situ temperature values were taken at locations where useful satellite data are available i.e. no striping. Regression analysis was carried out using the SST from TMI data and in-situ data obtained from the Meteorological Department of Malaysia. The two-dimensional scatter plot between TMI data and in-situ data gives a R2 value of 0.92 and RMSE of 0.3oC. The SST during the north east monsoon period was slightly lower than the SST during the south west monsoon. The study shows that TMI satellite data can be used to derive SST over large areas of the sea

Application of Remote Sensing and Hydrological Modelling in Flood Prediction Studies

Remote sensing techniques have been used in various applications including agriculture, forestry, oceanography and environmental studies. This study was carried out using remote sensing techniques and hydrological modeling for flood prediction in the Klang Valley. The remote sensing satellite data that were used is the Landsat-5 Thematic Mapper (TM) data whilst the flood prediction is based on the U.S. Soil Conservation Service Technical Release 55 (SCS TR-55) model. This model involves the calculation of runoff from Curve Number (CN) that relate to landuse, soil type, hydrological conditions and soil moisture. In the determination of runoff, landuse information were derived from the Landsat-5 TM data and landuse maps. The runoff values were used in the calculation of concentration time, peak discharge and bankfull discharge. The peak discharge was calculated by the graphical method of SCS TR-55 model whilst the bankfull discharge was derived from the slope area method. Flood occurrence was determine by comparing the peak discharge values with bankfull discharge values. Flooding occurs if the peak discharge exceeds the bankfull discharge. In this study, watershed areas were generated and the area that would be flooded for specific amount of rainfall were determined using remote sensing techniques and the SCS TR-55 model. The results that were obtained are encouraging and indicate the potential of using remote sensing techniques with hydrological modeling for flood prediction

An accuracy assessment of ASTER stereo images-derived digital elevation model by using rational polynomial coefficient model

The along-track stereo images of Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) sensor with 15 m resolution were used to generate Digital Elevation Model (DEM) on an area with low and near Mean Sea Level (MSL) elevation in Johor, Malaysia. The absolute DEM was generated by using the Rational Polynomial Coefficient (RPC) model which was run on ENVI 4.8 software. In order to generate the absolute DEM, 60 Ground Control Pointes (GCPs) with almost vertical accuracy less than 10 meter extracted from topographic map of the study area. The assessment was carried out on uncorrected and corrected DEM by utilizing dozens of Independent Check Points (ICPs). Consequently, the uncorrected DEM showed the RMSEz of ± 26.43 meter which was decreased to the RMSEz of ± 16.49 meter for the corrected DEM after post-processing. Overall, the corrected DEM of ASTER stereo images met the expectations

Orthophotography and its Applications in the Recording of Buildings

This paper deals with the orthophoto technique of recording buildings. Firstly, it focuses on the concept of orthophotography where the principles of differential rectification are described. Secondly, the errors inherent in the orthophotographic process which would affect the accuracy and pictorial Quality of the final product, that is, the orthophoto itself are discussed. Among the errors, system errors followed by scanning errors have the major effect on the accuracy and pictorial quality. Finally, the writer presents his observations from the studies carried out on four different types of building surfaces

Undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in remote sensing at University Technology Malaysia

The Faculty of Geoinformation Science and Engineering at University technology Malaysia has been offering B.Sc programmes in land surveying and poverty management since 1972. However, with the increasing needs for professionals in other fields such as remote sensing, geoinformatics and land administration & development , the Faculty now offers three more new courses, namely :1) B.Sc (Remote sensing ), (2) B.Sc (Geoinformatics), and (3) B.Sc (Land Administration & Development ). The Faculty also has been offering postgraduate programmes related to geomatic engineering, remote sensing, geoinformatics, GPS surveying, hydrography, property management and land administration & development. This paper presents an overview of the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in remote sensing at the Faculty

Undergraduate and Postgraduate Programmes in Remote Sensing at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

The Faculty of Geoinformation Science amd Engineering at universiti Teknologi Malaysia has been offering BSc programmes in land surveying and property management since 1972 However, with the increasing needs for professionals in other fields such as remote sensing, geoinformatic and land administration & development, the faculty now offers three more new courses, manely (I) B.Se (Remote Sensing). (2) B ~c (Ueointormutics, (3) B,Sc (Land Administration & Development) The Faculty also has been offering postgraduate programmes related to geomatic engineering, remote sensing, geoinformatics, GPS surveying, hydrography, property management and land administration & development. This paper presents an overview of the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in remote sensing at the faculty

Remote sensing sducation in Malaysia: A systematic approach at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

The current approach that has been adopted in remote sensing education at the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) is presented in this paper. A systematic formulation of syllabus that addresses cognitive learning issues, the integration of remote sensing with other related technologies, opportunities to conduct research, undergoing training and promoting the technology to others are viewed as systematic approach in remote sensing education and further discussed in this paper. Suggestions are also made to have knowledge fusion between remote sensing and related technologies and inclusion of remote sensing elements into primary and secondary school syllabus in Malaysia. Research shows that UTM has adopted near systematic approach with rooms for improvement. With the Memorandum of Understanding signed between UTM and Malaysian Centre for Remote Sensing (MACRES), further development in the aspects of human resource development programme, technology transfer, research, consultation, and data/information exchange is expected to happen in remote sensing

Remote sensing education at university of technology Malaysia for supporting local related industries in attaining sustainable natural resource and environmental managements

Since the beginning of the remote sensing development, remarkable progress has been made in utilizing remote sensing data, to describe, study, monitor and model the earth's surface and interior. Remote sensing is rapidly becoming accepted as an excellent tool for decision- making process. The present trend of development in remote sensing is focused on the improvements in the sensor technology, especially in the spatial, spectral, and radiometric resolution. These improvements have enabled the scientific community to operationalise the methodology as well as broadening applications of remote sensing data in particular to support sustainable natural resource and environmental managements. The main objective of this paper is to highlight the remote sensing education programmes offered at the University of Technology Malaysia both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. This programmes is very important as a measure to fulfilled human resource requirements to support the related industries in utilization of the technology for attaining sustainable natural resource and environmental management in Malaysia. The curriculum for the courses, facilities and related research works that have been carried out are also highlighted

Satellite remote sensing : Applications of ERS-I synthetic aperture radar for deriving coastal zone information

The use of radar remote sensing in the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum has many advantages in comparison with optical remote sensing in the Visible and infrared wavelengths. By far the most important factor is the virtual insensitivity of radar to atmospheric conditions. This allows the regular collection of site observations independent of cloud coveror time ofoverpLl$S. On the other hand, the interpretation of radar imagery over land and ocean is not as straightforward as the more commonly used visible and infrared remote sensors. Usually special image processing techniques must be applied on the radar imagery to make it more readily interpretable. Furthermore, the interpretation of the backscattering process that underlies the radar image formation must be well understood with respect fa the physical characteristics of the targets under observation and the specifics of the radar instrument. This paper reports on some of the results of a study that has been carried out to derive coastal zone information from multi-Temporal synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data of the ERS-l satellite over the coastal areas of Terengganu, Malaysia. Digital image processing of the SAR data has been made that includes filtering, texture processing and Fast Fourier Transform ([1FT) for ocean wave spectra generation. Some of the features that have been identified on the processed SAR data include oil slicks, ocean waves, river outflows, breakwaters. ship and ship wakes. Some land features such as natural forest. plantations and paddy fields can also be recognised

Chlorophyll-a mapping from the moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer data in the South China Sea

The amount of chlorophyll-a depends on the amount of algae and can also be used as an indicator of phytoplankton abundance and biomass in coastal water. The concentration of chlorophyll-a also could be a general measure of water quality. A series of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data acquired on different dates were used in this study since chlorophyll-a concentration change over time. In this study, four different algorithms had been chosen to extract chlorophyll-a concentration from MODIS data in the South China Sea. MODIS data acquired on 13 Jun 2001 was used to derive the coefficients in the algorithm since ground truth data is available. The accuracy of these algorithms was also assessed by comparing the correlation between measured and calculated chlorophyll-a values. The best algorithm is the Gordon algorithm with a R2 value of 0.735. Thus, Gordon’s algorithm was used to obtain chlorophyll-a distribution during the north east monsoon and south west monsoon period in 2003 and 2004. The results show that during the north east monsoon and south west monsoon periods, the chlorophyll-a concentration is between 0.1-0.5 mg m-3 while the chlorophyll-a concentration during the inter-monsoon period is between 0.1-1.0 mg m-3