Tatiana Solovey

Abstract

The main aim of the work was to develop methods of remote identification of marshes, detection of floodedterritories, and classification of plant cover on the basis of data of satellites operating in the optical and microwavespectres in particular. The research is done in 2014 on the territories of the Rozwarowo Marshes natureprotected area, located in the north-eastern Poland in the delta of Oder. The backscattering coefficients (σ°), calculated from Radarsat-2 (Phased Array type C-band Synthetic Aperture Radar) images registered at crosspolarization VH on 26 September 2014 were applied for classification of main types of wetland communities.The peculiarities of plant cover are also discovered using Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI),calculated on the basis satellite image SPOT-6 on September, the 1st, 2014. The differences in the NDVI valuewithin homogeneous segment of plant are caused, first of all by the soil moisture. Close connection betweenthe soil moisture and the NDVI value for the main groups of plant cover is detected. The application of coefficients σ°VH/σ°VV, calculated on the basis of radar images at the polarization VH and VV and the big rayangle (above 40°) of incidence are suggested for identification of flooded territories.

Keywords: Radarsat-2, radar backscatter, wetland habitats, NDVI, marshes monitoring

Tatiana Solovey [tatiana.solovey@pgi.gov.pl], Polish Geological Institute – National Research Institute Rakowiecka 4, 00-975 Warsaw: Poland