Module - 8 Lecture Notes - 7: Remote Sensing-Remote Sensing Applications Other Applications in Civil Engineering

Remote Sensing-Remote Sensing Applications
Other applications in civil engineering
MODULE 8 LECTURE NOTES 7

OTHER APPLICATIONS IN CIVIL ENGINEERING
1. Introduction
With the availability of high spatial and spectral resolution data, remote sensing technology
finds wide variety of applications in civil engineering. This lecture gives a very brief
overview of a few such applications, viz.,
Urban and regional planning
Identification of geothermal energy sources
Assessment of snow cover and water equivalent
Groundwater studies
Earthquake and Tsunami studies
2. Urban and Regional Planning
Our urban areas are expanding at a rapid rate mainly due to the population growth and the
large scale migration from the rural areas. This urban area expansion creates additional
pressure on the land, water and infrastructural resources. Regular monitoring of the urban
growth scenario, as well as appropriate planning is essential to ensure the accessibility to
basic amenities in all areas. However the rapid growth rate and the unregulated growth are
the major problems in field level monitoring of the urban areas. Continuous planning is
required to meet the demands of growing urban areas. Detailed information about land
distribution and its use in and around the urban area is essential in this regard.
Satellite remote sensing finds potential application in urban planning owing to its capability
to capture very fine resolution images of the urban areas and feasibility to achieve frequent
temporal imaging. Data can be acquired in minimum time with less effort. With satellites
such as IKONOS and IRS Cartosat, capable of providing less than 1m spatial resolution, it is
now possible to identify features as small as 1m from the satellite images.
D Nagesh Kumar, IISc, Bangalore
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Venugopala Rao et al. (2010) listed a few potential applications of remote sensing and GIS in
urban planning, under three broad classes:
Perspectives plan/ development plan preparation
Present land use and regional level landscape
Infrastructure network (Roads, Railways, and Settlements)
Hydrological features (River/Stream, lakes)
Updation of base maps
Urban sprawl, land use change and population growth, and
Master plan/ Regional plan proposals
Infrastructure planning involving
Road network and connectivity planning
Road alignment
Utility planning (Sewage treatment plant , garbage dump site selection, water
works)
Growth centre locations
Environmental planning that require
Mapping of environmental parameters like green cover, surface water bodies

and drainage network.
Urban land use indicators and Impact assessment
Development of Decision Support Systems like Urban Information System

(UIS), Urban Indicator Observatory (UIO), Municipal Information System
(MIS) etc.
For example, in Fig.1 satellite imageries of the San Jose area of two time periods are
compared. The first figure is the Landsat TM images taken in 1973 and the second image is
the Landsat ETM+ image taken in 1999. Comparison of the images shows that the urban
development has spread out to larger areas during the 26 year time period.
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Fig.1 Landsat images of the San Jose area during different time period
Source: http://www.fas.org/irp/imint/docs/rst/Sect4/Sect4_1.html
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Other than the urban sprawl mapping, remote sensing data can also be used for three
dimensional mapping of the urban areas. With the advancement of satellite technology, now
it is possible to collect stereo pairs of imageries for any area which enable the user to create
3-dimentional models of cities (e.g., DigitalGlobe satellites).
Fig. 2 shows a 3-D model of an urban area developed using stereo pairs of DigitalGlobe
images.
Fig.2. Three dimensional model of an urban area developed from DigitalGlobe images
Source: http://www.earthzine.org/2011/06/27/very-high-spatial-resolution-imagery-forurban-applications/
3. Geo-thermal Energy
Geo-thermal energy has been gaining wide attention recently. Geo-thermal energy is
produced from underground reservoirs of steam or hot water. Being the most reliable, and
sustainable source of energy, several studies have been ongoing to develop technologies to
tap these geo-thermal energy resources for human use.
Following are some essential conditions required to be met by a good geo-thermal reservoir
(Sabbins, 1973).
A large high-temperature heat source must be present at a relatively shallow depth
Porous and permeable reservoir rocks to hold steam or water must be present near the
heat source
There must be a natural recharge system to produce the steam or hot water
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An impermeable zone above the reservoir is necessary to prevent the escape of steam
to the surface.
All these being the features below ground surface, it is difficult to locate geo-thermal
reservoirs from surface observations.
However, many geothermal reservoirs have some sort of surface expressions in the form of
minute increase in the surface temperature. Such phenomenon can be monitored with the aid
of thermal remote sensing data. Moreover, the thermal energy reservoirs are generally
associated with faults and fractures. Remote sensing data can also be used to identify the
faults and fractures to a large extent.
4. Snow cover and water equivalent
Periodic snow cover depth and extent are some of the essential informations required for
snow-melt runoff forecasting. Field-based surveys for periodic monitoring of Snow covered
areas (SCA) are not easy due to the difficulties in the physical access to the snow covered
areas. Satellite remote sensing techniques, being operational from space-borne platforms,
help to overcome the accessibility issues. With the capability to provide images of fine spatial
resolution and frequent temporal sampling, satellite remote sensing is becoming a vital tool
for the near-real time monitoring of the SCA with good accuracy.
Both optical and microwave (both passive and active) remote sensing techniques have been
used for SCA mapping.
Optical remote sensing:
Uses VIS and NIR bands. Example: Landsat TM, MODIS
The most commonly used approach for SCA mapping
Finer spatial resolution of the images is the major advantage
Advantageous for mapping dry snow cover
Cloud cover commonly observed over SCA is generally one of the major hindrances
in optical remote sensing.
Active microwave remote sensing (e.g., Synthetic Aperture radar, SAR):
Backscattering of the microwave signals by SCA is different from that by the bare
ground.
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o Difference is maximum in case of wet snow and hence can be easily identified
o Difference is insignificant in case of dry snow and hence is difficult to
differentiate from bare ground
Capable of collecting data even under cloud cover
Passive microwave imaging:
Microwave signals reflected from the surface are used to estimate the brightness
temperature of the surface, which in turn are used to estimate snow depth, snow extent
and snow water equivalent.
For example, Schmugge et al (2002) used the following equation to relate snow water
equivalent (SWE) to the brightness temperature.
SWE
A B
TB ( f1 ) TB ( f 2 )
f 2 f1
(1)
where A and B are the regression coefficients, TB is the brightness temperature and f1
and f2 are the frequencies of the low scattering and high scattering microwave
channels, respectively.
Advantageous over optical remote sensing due to their capability to penetrate through
the cloud cover.
Reduced cost involved and availability of global coverage are the advantages of
passive microwave imaging over the radar remote sensing for snow mapping.
Poor spatial resolution is a major limitation of the passive microwave image

application in SCA mapping.
Table 1 gives a list of satellites/sensors used for snow mapping and the spectral ranges used
(Nagesh Kumar and Reshmidevi, 2013).
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Table 1. List of satellites/sensors that are most commonly used for snow mapping (Nagesh
Kumar and Reshmidevi, 2013)
Satellite / Sensor
Spectral
bands
Characteristics
Reference
Nimbus-7 /
SMMR
Passive
microwave
Daily data at 25 km
spatial resolution
Rango et al., 1989
Passive
microwave
VIS
NIR
Daily data at 12.5 km Kelly et al., 2003

spatial resolution
30 m spatial resolution,
Rosenthal and Dozier, 1996
revisit period is 16 days
Daily data at 1 km
Akyrek and orman, 2002
spatial resolution
AQUA / AMSR-E
Landsat TM
NOAA / AVHRR VIS, NIR

Terra / MODIS
ERS-1 and 2,
Radarsat / SAR
and Polarimetric
SAR
VIS, NIR
Daily data at 250 m

spatial resolution
Active
microwave
Huang et al., 2011

8-100 m spatial
Rott and Nagler, 1995
resolution
Matzler, 1987
Repeat cycle is 24 days
Baghdadi et al., 1999
Rittger et al., 2013
Acronyms
AMSR-E: Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer - Earth Observing System
AVHRR: Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer
ERS: European Remote Sensing Satellite
MODIS: Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer
SAR: Synthetic Aperture Radar
SMMR: Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer
NOAA: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
With the introduction of remote sensing technology in snow mapping, global level, daily
snow cover maps are now available by aggregating the data available from multiple satellites.
Daily maps of global snow cover at about 4 km spatial resolution are now available from
NOAA by combining IR and microwave data from multiple satellites including NOAAs
GOES Imager, Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellites (POES) AVHRR, US Air Force
DMSP/SSMI, and EUMETSAT MSG/SEVIRI sensors. Fig.3 shows the snow depth data over
United States on 9th March 2013, obtained from the NOAA.
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Fig. 3. Map of snow depth over United States on 9th March, 2013, generated using the data
from multiple satellites (Source: http://www.eldoradocountyweather.com/climate/worldmaps/world-snow-ice-cover.html)
5 Groundwater Studies
Another important application of remote sensing is in groundwater assessment and
management.
Remote sensing application in the groundwater studies are generally classified into three
broad areas:
Estimation of the geomorphologic parameters essential for the groundwater modeling
Estimation of the groundwater potential
Estimation of the groundwater storage
5.1 Estimation of the geomorphologic parameters

Remote sensing techniques have been widely used to extract information about the geological
and surface features (eg., dykes and lineaments, changes in the lithology, terrain
characteristics) that are closely associated with the occurrence of groundwater. Optical
sensors such as Landsat TM, IRS LISS have been commonly used for such studies.
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Satellite image of the Great Dyke in Zimbabwe is shown in Fig. 4. Fig.5 shows the Landsat-1
FCC image of the central California coast with the geologic structures map superimposed
over it.
Fig.4. Great Dyke in Zimbabwe as seen in the satellite image

Source: http://www.fas.org/irp/imint/docs/rst/Sect17/Sect17_3.html
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Fig.5 Landsat-1 FCC image of the central California coast with the geologic structures map
superimposed over it
Source: https://www.fas.org/irp/imint/docs/rst/Sect2/Sect2_8.html
Remote sensing techniques can also be used to extract the water levels in the lakes and rivers,
which is an essential input for the groundwater modeling.
Another essential information that remote sensing can provide is the terrain height. With the
use of modern techniques like radar interferometry and Lidar altimetry, fine resolution DEM
is now available, which can provide the terrain height for the groundwater studies.
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5.2 Estimation of groundwater potential

Groundwater potential zone identification is a multi-criteria evaluation problem, where the
thematic layers of hydro-geological parameters are integrated in a GIS environment to
identify the groundwater potential.
Thematic layers such as lithology, landforms, lineaments and surface water bodies etc. used
for the groundwater potential zone identification can be generated through remote sensing
satellite data. For example, data from IRS LISS (Krishnamurthy et al., 2000) and Landsat TM
(Rai et al., 2005) sensors have been widely used to derive such thematic layers for the
groundwater studies. These layers may be combined with other information such as drainage
density, slope and soil types in a GIS environment (Krishnamurthy et al., 1996). Logical
conditions defining the groundwater potential were evaluated using these thematic layers.
For example, Fig. 6 shows the identification of the potential groundwater recharge areas
using thematic layers generated using remote sensing data (Rao, 2008). SRTM DEM was
used to generate the slope map in this study.
Fig. 6. Identification of potential groundwater recharge zones using remote sensing data
(Images in the figure are taken from Rao, 2008
http://cssteap.org/pilote_project/rs_gis/twelfth_course/rao/rao_text.htm)
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5.3 Groundwater storage estimation

Direct estimation of groundwater storage using optical or microwave remote sensing data is
difficult as these signals cannot penetrate beyond the top soil layer to monitor the presence of
groundwater.
Current approaches to estimate the groundwater storage levels are based on the terrestrial
water storage (TWS) estimated using the data from the Gravity Recovery and Climate
Experiment (GRACE) satellites of NASA, along with the ground-based observations.
GRACE is a joint project between NASA and the Deutsches Zentrum fr Luft- und
Raumfahrt (DLR) with a primary objective to measure the Earths gravity field and its time
variability from space, operational since 2002. The mission uses two satellites following each
other at about 220 km apart, on the same orbital track at 500 km above the Earth.
Fig.7. Schematic representation of the twin satellites in the GRACE

(Source: http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/2012/01/water-water-not-everywhere/)
The position and velocity of the satellites is measured using onboard GPS antenna, whereas
the exact separation between the two satellites are measured using a K-band microwave link
between these satellites. These measurements are related to the variations in the continental
hydrological cycle and changes in the glacier ice mass. In addition, GRACE satellites are
used to measure the temporal variation in the gravity field. Observed temporal variations in
the gravity field are used to estimate the changes in the TWS (Rodell et al., 2009).
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TWS consists of both soil moisture storage and groundwater storage. Therefore, if the soil
moisture information is available through in-situ measurements, TWS data from GRACE
may be used to estimate the groundwater storage.
Yeh et al. (2006) used the following algorithm to retrieve the groundwater storage in Illinois
using the TWS data from GRACE and the in-situ soil moisture measurements.
TWS SM GW nD
ds
dh
Sy
dt
dt
(2)
where, n is the soil porosity, D is the root zone depth, s is the soil relative saturation, t is the
time period, Sy is the specific yield, h is the groundwater level.
In another study, Rodell et al. (2009) clubbed the soil moisture simulations from a hydrologic
model with the TWS change derived from the GRACE data to show the drastic groundwater
depletion in the Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana states in India.
Fig.8 shows the groundwater storage map of the United States, in terms of current wet or dry
conditions expressed as percentiles relative to those during the period 1948 to 2009. The map
is generated using TWS from GRACE satellite data as the basic information.
Fig. 8 Groundwater storage map of the United States derived from the GRACE satellite data
Source: http://droughtdev.unl.edu/MonitoringTools/NASAGRACEDataAssimilation.aspx
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6. Earthquake and Tsunami studies

Remote sensing techniques have been successfully employed for assessing the damage
caused during natural calamities like earthquake and tsunami.
Very high resolution remote sensing data can be used to identify the structural damage and
the extent of affected areas. Manmade structures possess more or less regular shape and
pattern. Any structural damage generally causes visible changes to this shape, and this
concept is used in damage assessment with the aid of remote sensing data (DellAcqua and
Gamba, 2012). Comparison of images obtained before and after the earthquake helps to
identify the affected areas and the spatial extent of the damage.
Remote sensing images also find applications in assessing the inundation and damage caused
due to tsunami. Remote sensing images in the visible and thermal bands, and the radar
images have been widely used for identifying the inundation areas and to identify the surface
features hampering the propagation of tsunami waves (Stramondo, 2013).
Fig. 9 shows the Quickbird images of the Banda Aceh area in Sumatra before and after the
deadly tsunami in December 2004.
Fig. 9 Quickbird images of the

Banda Aceh area in Sumatra (a)
before the December 2004 tsunami
and (b) after the tsunami.
Source:
http://www.fas.org/irp/imint/docs/rst
/Sect3/Sect3_7.html
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7. Reservoir Sedementation
Reservoirs are usually located towards the end of a large watershed. Knowledge regarding the
sedimentation in various zones of a reservoir is highly beneficial for the balance life of
reservoir. Remote sensing imageries provide means to access synoptic views regarding the
sedimentation characteristics in a reservoir. The water spread area of a reservoir at different
levels between Full Reservoir Level (FRL) and Minimum Draw Down Level (MDDL) in
different months can be monitored for a particular elevation using satellite information. A
reduction in this water spread area for an elevation will essentially indicated sediment
deposition at that particular elevation level. Once knowledge regarding the reservoir levels on
the date of satellite pass if known, it helps in the calculation of Elevation-Capacity curves. A
shift in these curves will strongly indicate a loss in the reservoir capacity. Thus, use of
satellite imageries acquired on multiple dates helps in computation of volume of storage due
to sedimentation.
Bibliography / Further reading
1. Akyrek
Z, orman A (2002). Monitoring snow-covered
areas
using
NOAAAVHRR data in the eastern part of Turkey Hydrolo. Sci. J., 47 (2), pp 243252.
2. Baghdadi N, Fortin JP, Bernier M (1999). Accuracy of wet snow mapping using
simulated Radarsat backscattering coefficients from observed snow cover
characteristics Int. J. Remote Sens., 20 (10), pp: 2049-2068.
3. DellAcqua F and Gamba P. (2012) Remote sensing and earthquake damage
assessment: Experience, limits, and perspectives Proc. IEEE, 100(10), 2876-2890.
4. Huang L, Li Z, Tian BS, Chen Q, Liu JL, Zhang R (2011). Classification and snow
line detection for glacial areas using the polarimetric SAR image Remote Sens.
Environ., 115, pp 1721-1732. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2011.03.004.
5. Kelly RE, Chang AT, Tsang L, Foster JL (2003). A prototype AMSR-E global snow
area and snow depth algorithm IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens., 41 (2). pp:230242.
6. Krishnamurthy J, Mani A, Jayaraman V, Manivel M (2000). Groundwater resources
development in hard rock terrain- an approach using remote sensing and GIS
techniques Int.J. Applied Earth Obs. Geoinformation, 2(3-4), pp 204-215.
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7. Krishnamurthy J, Venkatesa Kumar N, Jayaraman V, Manivel M (1996). An

approach to demarcate ground water potential zones through remote sensing and a
geographical information system Int. J. Remote Sens., 17(10), pp 1867-1884.
8. Matzler C (1987) Applications of the interaction of microwaves with the natural
snow cover Remote Sens.Rev., 2, pp: 259-387.
9. Nagesh Kumar D and Reshmidevi TV (2013). Remote sensing applications in water
resources J. Indian Institute of Sci., 93(2), 163-188.
10. Rai B, Tiwari A, Dubey VS (2005). Identification of groundwater prospective zones
by using remote sensing and geoelectical methods in Jharia and Raniganj coalfields,
Dhanbad district, Jharkhand state. J. Earth System Sci., 114 (5), pp 515-522.
11. Rango A, Martinec J, Chang ATC, Foster JL(1989). Average areal water equivalent
of snow in a mountain basin using microwave and visible satellite data IEEE Trans.
Geosci. Remote Sens,, 2(6), pp 740-745.
12. Rao, P.J ( 2008) Sustainable development of ground water potential zones in and
around Madhurawada dome in Visakhapatnam district, Andhra Pradesh, India A
GIS approachhttp://cssteap.org/pilote_project/rs_gis/twelfth_course/rao/rao_text.htm
13. Rittger K, Painter TH, Dozier J (2013). Assessment of methods for mapping snow
cover
from
MODIS
Adv.
Water.
Resour.,
51,
pp
367-380.
doi:
10.1016/j.advwatres.2012.03.002.
14. Rodell M, Velicogna I, Famiglietti J S (2009). Satellite-based estimates of
groundwater depletion in India Nature, 460, pp 999-1002.
15. Rosenthal W, Dozier J (1996). Automated mapping of montane snow cover at
subpixel resolution from the Landsat Thematic Mapper Water Resour. Res., 32 (1),
pp 115-130.
16. Rott E, Nagler T (1995). Monitoring temporal dynamics of snowmelt with ERS-1
SAR In Proceedings of IGARSS95, Firenze (Italy), July 1995 (Piscataway: IEEE),
pp. 1747-1749.
17. Sabbins Jr. F. F., 1978. Remote Sensing Principles and Interpretation. W.H.
Freeman and Company, San Francisco.
18. Schmugge TJ, Kustas WP, Ritchie JC, Jackson TJ, Rango A (2002). Remote sensing
in hydrology Adv. Water Resour., 25, pp 13671385.
19. Stramondo S. (2013) The Tohoku-Oki earthquake: A summary of scientific
outcomes from remote sensing IEEE Geosci. Remote Sens. Lett., 10(4), 895-897.
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20. Venugopala Rao K, Ramesh B, Bhavani SLV, Kamini J. (2010) Urban and Regional
Planning In Remote Sensing Applications (Roy PS, Dwivedi RS, Vijayan D Eds.),
National Remote Sensing Centre, Hyderabad.
21. Yeh PJ-F, Swenson SC, Famiglietti JS, Rodell M (2006). Remote sensing of
groundwater storage changes in Illinois using the Gravity Recovery and Climate
Experiment
(GRACE)
Water
Resour.
Res.,
42
(W12203).
doi:
10.1029/2006/WR005374.
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Other applications in civil engineering