Image Analysis, Classification and Change Detection in Remote Sensing: With Algorithms for Python, Fourth Edition, is focused on the development and implementation of statistically motivated, data-driven techniques for digital image analysis of remotely sensed imagery and it features a tight interweaving of statistical and machine learning theory of algorithms with computer codes. It develops statistical methods for the analysis of optical/infrared and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery, including wavelet transformations, kernel methods for nonlinear classification, as well as an introduction to deep learning in the context of feed forward neural networks. New in the Fourth Edition: An in-depth treatment of a recent sequential change detection algorithm for polarimetric SAR image time series. The accompanying software consists of Python (open source) versions of all of the main image analysis algorithms. Presents easy, platform-independent software installation methods (Docker containerization). Utilizes freely accessible imagery via the Google Earth Engine and provides many examples of cloud programming (Google Earth Engine API). Examines deep learning examples including TensorFlow and a sound introduction to neural networks, Based on the success and the reputation of the previous editions and compared to other textbooks in the market, Professor Canty's fourth edition differs in the depth and sophistication of the material treated as well as in its consistent use of computer codes to illustrate the methods and algorithms discussed. It is self-contained and illustrated with many programming examples, all of which can be conveniently run in a web browser. Each chapter concludes with exercises complementing or extending the material in the text.

Uncertainties in GPS Positioning: A Mathematical Discourse describes the calculations performed by a GPS receiver and the problems associated with ensuring that the derived location is a close match to the actual location. Inaccuracies in calculating a location can have serious repercussions, so this book is a timely source for information on this rapidly evolving technology.

Technological advancements have changed that way we think of traditional urban and spatial planning. The inclusion of conventional elements with modern technologies is allowing this field to advance at a rapid pace. Geospatial Technologies in Urban System Development: Emerging Research and Opportunities is a pivotal reference source for the latest research findings on the different tools and techniques ranging from mathematical sciences to spatial sciences which can be effective in unveiling the complexity of an urban system. Featuring extensive coverage on relevant areas such as urban traffic, remote sensing, and geographic information systems, this publication is an ideal resource for academics, researchers, graduate-level students, professionals, and policymakers in urban economy, regional planning, and information science disciplines.

The environmental and economic importance of monitoring forests and agricultural resources has allowed remote sensing to be increasingly in the development of products and services responding to user needs. This volume presents the main applications in remote sensing for agriculture and forestry, including the primary soil properties, the estimation of the vegetation's biophysical variables, methods for mapping land cover, the contribution of remote sensing for crop and water monitoring, and the estimation of the forest cover properties (cover dynamic, height, biomass). This book, part of a set of six volumes, has been produced by scientists who are internationally renowned in their fields. It is addressed to students (engineers, Masters, PhD), engineers and scientists, specialists in remote sensing applied to agriculture and forestry. Through this pedagogical work, the authors contribute to breaking down the barriers that hinder the use of radar imaging techniques.

The continental hydrological cycle is one of the least understood components of the climate system. The understanding of the different processes involved is important in the fields of hydrology and meteorology. In this volume the main applications for continental hydrology are presented, including the characterization of the states of continental surfaces (water state, snow cover, etc.) using active and passive remote sensing, monitoring the Antarctic ice sheet and land water surface heights using radar altimetry, the characterization of redistributions of water masses using the GRACE mission, the potential of GNSS-R technology in hydrology, and remote sensing data assimilation in hydrological models. This book, part of a set of six volumes, has been produced by scientists who are internationally renowned in their fields. It is addressed to students (engineers, Masters, PhD) , engineers and scientists, specialists in remote sensing applied to hydrology. Through this pedagogical work, the authors contribute to breaking down the barriers that hinder the use of Earth observation data.

For a long time, the dynamics of urban and coastal areas have been the focus of administrators and decision makers in charge of public policy in order to better take into account anthropogenic pressure and the impact of climate change. This volume presents applications of remote sensing in urban environments and coastal zones, including the use of remote sensing in city planning (urban expansion, light pollution, air quality, etc.), observation of the properties of ocean color, the study of coastal dynamics (identifying coastlines and estimating sediment balances, etc.) and analysis of the dynamics of mangroves. This book, part of a set of six volumes, has been produced by scientists who are internationally renowned in their fields. It is addressed to students (engineers, Masters, PhD), engineers and scientists, specialists in remote sensing applied to the coastal environment and urban areas. Through this pedagogical work, the authors contribute to breaking down the barriers that hinder the use of Earth observation data.

Sensing and Monitoring Technologies for Mines and Hazardous Areas: Monitoring and Prediction Technologies presents the fundamentals of mining related geotechnical risk and how the latest advances in sensing and data communication can be used both to prevent accidents and provide early warnings. Opencast mining operations involve huge quantities of overburden removal, dumping, and backfilling in excavated areas. Substantial increases in the rate of accumulation of waste dumps in recent years has resulted in greater height of dumps and also has given rise to the danger of dump failures as steeper open pit slopes are prone to failure. These failures lead to loss of valuable human lives and damage to mining machinery. This book presents the most recent advances in gas sensors, methane detectors, and power cut-off systems. It also introduces monitoring of the gas strata and environment, and an overview of the use of Internet of Things and cloud computing for mining sensing and surveillance purposes. Targeted at geotechnical and mining engineers, this volume covers the latest findings and technology to prevent mining accidents and mitigate the inherent risk of the activity.

The nineteenth century was an era of breathtakingly ambitious geographic expeditions across the Americas. The seminal Chorographic Commission of Colombia, which began in 1850 and lasted about a decade, was one of Latin America's most extensive. The commission's mandate was to define and map the young republic and its resources with an eye toward modernization. In this history of the commission, Nancy Appelbaum focuses on the geographers' fieldwork practices and visual production as the men traversed the mountains, savannahs, and forests of more than thirty provinces in order to delineate the country's territorial and racial composition. Their assumptions and methods, Appelbaum argues, contributed to a long-lasting national imaginary. What jumps out of the commission's array of reports, maps, sketches, and paintings is a portentous tension between the marked differences that appeared before the eyes of the geographers in the field and the visions of sameness to which they aspired. The commissioners and their patrons believed that a prosperous republic required a unified and racially homogeneous population, but the commission's maps and images paradoxically emphasized diversity and helped create a ""country of regions."" By privileging the whiter inhabitants of the cool Andean highlands over those of the boiling tropical lowlands, the commission left a lasting but problematic legacy for today's Colombians.

Reflexive Cartography addresses the adaptation of cartography, including its digital forms (GIS, WebGIS, PPGIS), to the changing needs of society, and outlines the experimental context aimed at mapping a topological space. Using rigorous scientific analysis based on statement consistency, relevance of the proposals, and model accessibility, it charts the transition from topographical maps created by state agencies to open mapping produced by citizens. Adopting semiotic theory to uncover the complex communicative mechanisms of maps and to investigate their ability to produce their own messages and new perspectives, Reflexive Cartography outlines a shift in our way of conceptualizing maps: from a plastic metaphor of reality, as they are generally considered, to solid tools that play the role of agents, assisting citizens as they think and plan their own living place and make sense of the current world.

While megacities are a reality, so too are the environmental disturbances that they cause, including air and water pollution. These disturbances can be modeled with technology and data obtained by modern methods, such as by drone, to monitor cities in near real-time as well as help to simulate risk situations and propose future solutions. These solutions can be inspired by the theoretical principles of sustainable urbanism. Methods and Applications of Geospatial Technology in Sustainable Urbanism is a collection of innovative research that combines theory and practice on analyzing urban environments and applying sustainability principles to them. Highlighting a wide range of topics including geographic information systems, internet mapping technologies, and green urbanism, this book is ideally designed for urban planners, public administration officials, landscape analysts, geographers, engineers, entrepreneurs, academicians, researchers, and students.

Geographic Information Systems GIS is a modern and effective technology to address developmental issues. All over the world, it is extensively used for resource management, environmental issues and policy decisions support systems with increasingly wider applications in agriculture, water resources development & management, veterinary sciences to disaster management. Being a new and interdisciplinary in nature, this interesting subject requires a lot of introductory textbook to improve understanding of the students. The author has put his teaching and research experience into good use and has brought out this concise and very readable book. With topics like: Hardware, software & liveware, recent developments Spatial and Map Projections and Database management, modeling, structuring, Networking, conversion and quality aspects finding their way in this book, which makes it worth reading for not only students but also for the teaching fraternity.

Over the past century, mechanization has been an important means for optimizing resource utilization, improving worker health and safety and reducing labor requirements in farming while increasing productivity and quality of 4F (Food, Fuel, Fiber, Feed). Recognizing this contribution, agricultural mechanization was considered as one of the top ten engineering achievements of 20th century by the National Academy of Engineering. Accordingly farming communities have adopted increasing level of automation and robotics to further improve the precision management of crops (including input resources), increase productivity and reduce farm labor beyond what has been possible with conventional mechanization technologies. It is more important than ever to continue to develop and adopt novel automation and robotic solutions into farming so that some of the most complex agricultural tasks, which require huge amount of seasonal labor such as fruit and vegetable harvesting, could be automated while meeting the rapidly increasing need for 4F. In addition, continual innovation in and adoption of agricultural automation and robotic technologies is essential to minimize the use of depleting resources including water, minerals and other chemicals so that sufficient amount of safe and healthy food can be produced for current generation while not compromising the potential for the future generation. This book aims at presenting the fundamental principles of various aspects of automation and robotics as they relate to production agriculture (the branch of agriculture dealing with farming operations from field preparation to seeding, to harvesting and field logistics). The building blocks of agricultural automation and robotics that are discussed in the book include sensing and machine vision, control, guidance, manipulation and end-effector technologies. The fundamentals and operating principles of these technologies are explained with examples from cutting-edge research and development currently going on around the word. This book brings together scientists, engineers, students and professionals working in these and related technologies to present their latest examples of agricultural automation and robotics research, innovation and development while explaining the fundamentals of the technology. The book, therefore, benefits those who wish to develop novel agricultural engineering solutions and/or to adopt them in the future.