INTRODUCTION TO REMOTE SENSING

This preface presents the sixth edition of our remote sensing text. During the interval that has elapsed since our fifth edition, the pace of remote sensing has increased in several respects, expanding the scope of our text and presenting new content. The advanced capabilities of satellite systems, thermal imagery, and drones have made essential contributions to our efforts to address the significant challenges of our time, including wildfires, floods, and coastal erosion. Few could have anticipated the development of analytical tools and techniques that are now available for analysis of remotely sensed data, the explosion of new sensor systems, or the multiplicity of remote sensing’s applications throughout society. Such developments alone present challenges for any text on this subject. Our sixth edition benefits from the addition of a new author, Dr. Valerie Thomas, an experienced faculty member at Virginia Tech, who now joins Dr. Randolph Wynne and Dr. James Campbell. Dr. Thomas brings new knowledge and perspectives to the text that will benefit users at all levels. Changes in our field have also been reflected in the new four-color design throughout, with hundreds of new photos and figures, including original drawings by Susmita Sen. In addition, there are three new chapters on remote sensing platforms, agriculture, and forestry. Technological advances and cutting- edge applications are presented throughout this volume, including (1) discussions of Landsat 8 and Sentinel-2, (2) the growth of unmanned aerial systems, (3) mobile data collection, (4) current directions in climate change detection, (5) fire monitoring, (6) disaster response, and many other timely topics. With the use of varied local and global examples and case studies, this sixth edition will provide readers with an understanding of the latest tools and principles of collecting remote images, analyzing and interpreting the images, and applying them to land and water use. It shows how remote sensing data are used in multiple fields, including plant sciences, agriculture, forestry, earth sciences, hydrology, and land-use analysis.