L-band SAR sensitivity to prescribed burning effects in eucalypt forests of Western Australia

A. Fernandez-Carrillo; L. McCaw; M. A. Belenguer-Plomer; M. A. Tanase

doi:10.1117/12.2325669

9 October 2018 L-band SAR sensitivity to prescribed burning effects in eucalypt forests of Western Australia

A. Fernandez-Carrillo, L. McCaw, M. A. Belenguer-Plomer, M. A. Tanase

Proceedings Volume 10788, Active and Passive Microwave Remote Sensing for Environmental Monitoring II; 107880U (2018) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2325669
Event: SPIE Remote Sensing, 2018, Berlin, Germany

Abstract

Prescribed burning is a technique applied to control fire risk, and it has been used in the forests of Western Australia since the 1960s. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data are sensitive to vegetation structural changes and may detect changes in understory vegetation particularly when the upper forest canopy remains largely unaffected, as it is often the case for prescribed burns. In this study, the ability of the Radar Burn Ratio (RBR), a SAR index that measures the degree of change between pre- and post-event radar backscatter, to appraise fire efficiency in prescribed burns was assessed. Data acquired by the L-band PALSAR-2 sensor, onboard the ALOS-2 satellite, were analysed to study the relationship between radar backscatter coefficient and prescribed burns carried out in eucalypt forests in Western Australia. A previously proposed framework was adapted to evaluate burn impacts in different environmental conditions (dry, wet and mean) using HV and HH polarizations as well as the RFDI (Radar Forest Degradation Index). A linear relationship between RBR and fire severity was found for HV polarization and RFDI confirming previous results observed for wildfires. RBR_HV in dry environmental conditions yielded the most accurate estimates of fire impact (OA = 77.8 %; k = 0.67). RBR_HH showed higher ability to differentiate between severity classes in wet conditions while the RBR_RFDI showed an intermediate behavior. HH polarization and RFDI showed special ability for burn area detection in wet conditions. The results showed that it is possible to estimate the impact of prescribed burns using SAR data. As such, SAR data could contribute and assess the effectiveness of fire policy in Western Australia and similar environments.

Citation Download Citation

A. Fernandez-Carrillo, L. McCaw, M. A. Belenguer-Plomer, and M. A. Tanase "L-band SAR sensitivity to prescribed burning effects in eucalypt forests of Western Australia", Proc. SPIE 10788, Active and Passive Microwave Remote Sensing for Environmental Monitoring II, 107880U (9 October 2018); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2325669

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available