Quantum Optics and Electronics

Contains reports on two research projects.Joint Services Electronics Program (Contract DAAG29-78-C-0020)National Science Foundation (Grant ENG79-11380)U.S. Navy - Office of Naval Research (Contract N00014-79-C-0694)National Science Foundation (Grant ENG79-08031

Quantum Optics and Electronics

Contains reports on three research projects.U.S. Air Force - Office of Scientific Research (Contract F49620-79-C-0071)Joint Services Electronics Program (Contract DAAG29-78-C-0020)Joint Services Electronics Program (Contract DAAG29-80-C-0104)U.S. Navy - Office of Naval Research (Contract N00014-79-C-0694

Damage Assessment in Rural Environments Following Natural Disasters Using Multi-Sensor Remote Sensing Data

The damage caused by natural disasters in rural areas differs in nature extent, landscape, and structure, from the damage caused in urban environments. Previous and current studies have focused mainly on mapping damaged structures in urban areas after catastrophic events such as earthquakes or tsunamis. However, research focusing on the level of damage or its distribution in rural areas is lacking. This study presents a methodology for mapping, characterizing, and assessing the damage in rural environments following natural disasters, both in built-up and vegetation areas, by combining synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) and optical remote sensing data. As a case study, we applied the methodology to characterize the rural areas affected by the Sulawesi earthquake and the subsequent tsunami event in Indonesia that occurred on 28 September 2018. High-resolution COSMO-SkyMed images obtained pre- and post-event, alongside Sentinel-2 images, were used as inputs. This study’s results emphasize that remote sensing data from rural areas must be treated differently from that of urban areas following a disaster. Additionally, the analysis must include the surrounding features, not only the damaged structures. Furthermore, the results highlight the applicability of the methodology for a variety of disaster events, as well as multiple hazards, and can be adapted using a combination of different optical and SAR sensors

Combining TerraSAR-X and Landsat Images for Emergency Response in Urban Environments

Rapid damage mapping following a disaster event, especially in an urban environment, is critical to ensure that the emergency response in the affected area is rapid and efficient. This work presents a new method for mapping damage assessment in urban environments. Based on combining SAR and optical data, the method is applicable as support during initial emergency planning and rescue operations. The study focuses on the urban areas affected by the Tohoku earthquake and subsequent tsunami event in Japan that occurred on 11 March 2011. High-resolution TerraSAR-X (TSX) images of before and after the event, and a Landsat 5 image before the event were acquired. The affected areas were analyzed with the SAR data using only one interferometric SAR (InSAR) coherence map. To increase the damage mapping accuracy, the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was applied. The generated map, with a grid size of 50 m, provides a quantitative assessment of the nature and distribution of the damage. The damage mapping shows detailed information about the affected area, with high overall accuracy (89%), and high Kappa coefficient (82%) and, as expected, it shows total destruction along the coastline compared to the inland region

Erratum: Havivi, S., et al. Combining TerraSAR-X and Landsat Images for Emergency Response in Urban Environments. Remote Sens. 2018, 10, 802

After publication of the research paper [1], the authors noticed errors and wish to make the following corrections [...

Adrian Stern, MEMBER SPIE

Influence of severe vibrations on the visua