Decrease of L-band SAR backscatter with biomass of dense forests

Mermoz Stéphane, Rejou-Mechain Maxime, Villard Ludovic, Le Toan Thuy, Rossi Vivien, Gourlet-Fleury Sylvie. 2015. Decrease of L-band SAR backscatter with biomass of dense forests. Remote Sensing of Environment, 159 : 307-317.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2014.12.019

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Quartile : Outlier, Sujet : REMOTE SENSING / Quartile : Outlier, Sujet : IMAGING SCIENCE & PHOTOGRAPHIC TECHNOLOGY / Quartile : Q1, Sujet : ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Liste HCERES des revues (en SHS) : oui

Thème(s) HCERES des revues (en SHS) : Géographie-Aménagement-Urbanisme-Architecture

Résumé : Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is one of the most promising remote sensors to map forest carbon. The unique spaceborne and long-wavelength SAR data currently available are L-band data, but their relationship with forest biomass is still controversial, particularly for high biomass values. While many studies assume a complete loss of sensitivity above a saturation point, typically around 100 t.ha? 1, others assume a continuous positive correlation between SAR backscatter and biomass. The objective of this paper is to revisit the relationship between L-band SAR backscatter and dense tropical forest biomass for a large range of biomass values using both theoretical and experimental approaches. Both approaches revealed that after reaching a maximum value, SAR backscatter correlates negatively with forest biomass. This phenomenon is interpreted as a signal attenuation from the forest canopy as the canopy becomes denser with increasing biomass. This result has strong implications for L-band vegetation mapping because it can lead to a greater-than-expected under-estimation of biomass. The consequences for L-band biomass mapping are illustrated, and solutions are proposed.

Mots-clés Agrovoc : télédétection, radar, forêt tropicale humide, biomasse, ressource forestière, cartographie, cycle du carbone, carbone, stockage

Mots-clés géographiques Agrovoc : Afrique centrale, Cameroun

Classification Agris : K01 - Foresterie - Considérations générales
U30 - Méthodes de recherche
F40 - Écologie végétale

Champ stratégique Cirad : Axe 6 (2014-2018) - Sociétés, natures et territoires

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