Impacts of spatial resolution on land cover classification

Regularly updated land cover information is a requirement for various land management application. Remote sensing scenes can provide information highly useful for real-time modeling of the earth environment. However, the spatial resolution is also a very important factor to acquire the information on satellite imagery. This paper summarizes the basic conclusions of work in which the spatial resolution of satellite imagery, related to the factor of scale for land cover classification, was investigated. Optical data collected by two different sensors (THEOS with 15-m resolution and Landsat 5-TM with resolution 30-m) in 2010 were tested against the ability to correctly classify specific land cover classes at different scales of observation. Support Vector Machines (SVMs) classifier was used and Kathu district, Phuket, Thailand was the study area. The land cover was classified into 7 groups as forest, built-up, road, water, agriculture, grassland and bare land. The result indicated that the overall accuracy of THEOS with 15 m was slightly higher than Landsat-5 TM with 30 m resolution (90.65% and 89.00%, respectively). The outcome of the study can be discussed further to assess the suitable spatial resolution for land cover classification mapping of Kathu district. Understanding the role of scale on the spectral signatures of satellite data will help the correct interpretation of any classification results

Vegetation classification on Prathong Island, Phang Nga, Thailand

Habitat mapping as defined by plant communities is a common component of the planning and monitoring for conservation management. This study provided the test of two classifiers for producing the vegetation mapping in a tropical island. The selected area is Prathong Island, Phang Nga Province, Southern part of Thailand. The performance of the support vector machines (SVMs) image classification technique for vegetation classifying was assessed and compared with maximum likelihood classifier (MLC). The vegetation was grouped into 6 categories as Grassland, Beach forest, Mangrove forest, Swamp forest, Sand and Water. The overall and individual classification results were compared to find out the suitable classifier for producing a vegetation map. THEOS multispectral image with 15-m resolution, achieved on 19th January 2009, was used for this study. The results are useful to identify the boundary of each ecosystem on Prathong Island. Additional research is needed to assess the full potential of both classifiers and THEOS imagery for exploring potential applications on other tropical environments

Assessment Of Life Cycle Climate Performance (LCCP) Tools For HVAC&R Applications With The Latest Next Generation Refrigerant Technology

Societal demands to control climate change are driving the development of many Life Cycle Climate Performance (LCCP) tools to understand how to minimize the total environmental impacts of HVAC&R products and technology. The LCCP models can be extremely detailed, accounting for all CO2 contributions from “cradle” (refrigerant and product manufacturing), through use (including servicing and potential leak rates by type of product), to “grave” (recycling and disposal) for a product. LCCP tools have been developed for a number of HVAC&R product segments and continue to grow in number. However, there are few studies into understanding how the results from these various tools compare to each other against the latest available lower Global Warming Potential (GWP) next generation refrigerant technology. Because global regulatory discussions currently are focusing on reducing direct GWP contributions of refrigerants and for the most part are ignoring their impact on indirect GWP contributions as refrigerant choices are considered, there is potential for regulators to reduce the available refrigerant choices that would allow manufacturers to minimize the total environmental impact (lowest LCCP) through maximum efficiency. This paper will provide an overall assessment of using the latest available refrigerants technology with four LCCP tools. LCCP tools for the stationary refrigeration, transport refrigeration, chiller, and unitary product segments will be compared to understand the impact of reducing the direct GWP of a refrigerant given the latest refrigerant technology. This paper will suggest appropriate GWP limits for refrigerants by application, since direct GWP limits may need to be defined by application type based on the available refrigerant technology to minimize environmental impacts

Inside and out: An epicardial lead gone astray

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