Estimation of Forest Height and Canopy Density From a Single InSAR Correlation Coefficient

• A two-level model (TLM) is introduced and investigated for the estimation of forest height and canopy density from a single ground-corrected InSAR complex correlation coefficient. The TLM models forest as two scattering levels, namely, ground and vegetation, separated by a distance Delta h and with area-weighted backscatter ratio mu. The model is evaluated using eight VV-polarized bistatic-interferometric TanDEM-X image pairs acquired in the summers of 2011, 2012, and 2013 over the managed hemi-boreal test site Remningstorp, which is situated in southern Sweden. Ground phase is removed using a high-resolution digital terrain model. Inverted TLM parameters for thirty-two 0.5-ha plots of four different types (regular plots, sparse plots, seed trees, and clear-cuts) are studied against reference lidar data. It is concluded that the level distance Delta h can be used as an estimate of the 50th percentile forest height estimated from lidar (for regular plots: r > 0.95 and root-mean-square difference (sigma) 0.59 and sigma approximate to 10%, or 0.07).

Ämnesord

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Naturresursteknik -- Fjärranalysteknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Environmental Engineering -- Remote Sensing (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

synthetic aperture radar (SAR)

interferometric model

interferometry

two-level model (TLM)

forest height

Canopy density

TanDEM-X

Publikations- och innehållstyp

art (ämneskategori)

ref (ämneskategori)