Classroom
Remote
sensing is the science
of obtaining information
about an object
or area through
the analysis of
measurements made
at a distance from
the object (i.e.,
not coming in contact
with it).
The
oldest form of remote
sensing is aerial
photography where
the sensor system
is the camera and
film. More
recently, the field
of remote sensing
has grown to include
electro-optical
sensors which acquire
multispectral digital
images that can
be processed and
analyzed by computers. Many
of these sensors
are on satellites
which regularly
orbit the earth.
The
quantity most frequently
measured and recorded
in images is the
electromagnetic
energy reflected
by the object. The
source of the electromagnetic
energy is the sun
and the spectral
reflectance properties
of many Earth surface
features, such as
soil, vegetation
and water, can be
used to uniquely
identify and characterize
them.
For
this project, we
obtained information
about water resources
through the analysis
of images acquired
from satellite
sensors that orbit
about 400 miles
above the earth's
surface.
The
Electromagnetic
Spectrum
|
How
Satellite
Imagery
Works
|
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