MLS-assisted validation of WorldView-2 panchromatic image for estimating Pinus sylvestris crown height

Abstract

High spatial resolution satellite imaging has the advantages of both fine scale and large coverage that indicate the potential for measuring forest morphologies. However, because of the aerial view, imaging has limited capacity of explicitly deriving the under-crown structural parameters. A possible solution is to explore the relationships between this kind of variables such as crown height (CH) and the feature parameters readily derived from the satellite images. However, field sampling of the training data is not a trivial task. To handle this issue, this study attempted the state-of-the-art remote sensing technology of vehicle-based mobile laser scanning (MLS) for collecting the sample data. Evaluation for the case of the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) trees has preliminarily validated the plan. That is, MLS mapping enabled the parameter of CH to be estimated from WorldView-2 panchromatic images.