Emissions of methane were measured by a static chamber technique at 9 sites on 5 wetlands in the Eastern Temperate Wetland Region, north of Montreal. Mean daily methane fluxes measured from May to October ranged from 0.18 to 1071 mg/m$ sp2$/d, and estimated annual flux ranged from 0.02 to 186 g/m$ sp2$/y. Laboratory incubations of peat samples showed potential anaerobic methane production rates which ranged from 0.00 to 9.12 $ mu$g/g/d, and potential aerobic consumption rates from 0.55 to 3.75 $ mu$g/g/d. Seasonal methane emission patterns are related to water table level and CH$ sb4$ production and consumption potentials in the peat profile. Episodic fluxes were found to be important at several sites, contributing a significant portion of the total emissions. / Analysis of spectral reflectance data from 20 sites on 2 subarctic fens was carried out to address the issue of scaling up CH$ sb4$ emissions using satellite imagery. Hummocks, lawns and pools were found to be spectrally distinct enough to be differentiated by band 5 of Landsat MSS and band 3 of Landsat TM sensors. The averaging of spectral information in mixed pixels proved unlikely to be able to distinguish between wet lawn and string and pool communities. Such weaknesses can be overcome with the use of higher resolution data.

Thèse (D.R.Min.) -- Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, 2001. / Bibliogr.: f. 237-249. Document électronique également accessible en format PDF. CaQCU

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Delaware, 2005. / Principal faculty advisor: Chandra Kambhamettu, Dept. of Computer & Information Sciences. Includes bibliographical references.

The present thesis deals with evaluation of crop water stress by means of remote sensing. The first part of the research is focused on the assessment of water stress of sunflowers in a laboratory environment using spectral analysis of the reflected radiation and thermography. Leaf of suflowers temperature were evaluated and using them, the index of water stress CWSI were calculated. Reflection of leaf was evaluated in the wavelengths 350 -2500 nm. From these wavelengths spectral indexes were calculated - NDVI (Normalized difference vegetation index) which detect the presence of living green vegetation, WI (Water Index) which serve to calculate the approximate amount of water in the vegetation and RVI (simple ratio vegetation index) which determine the content of biomass or photosynthetic capacity. After that, they were compared with CWSI. Finally CWSI was compared with the spectral data, and from the resulting correlations they were apparent wavelengths, which correlated with given index more or less. The second part is focused on the assessment of water stress in terms of 4th. level catchment, specifically on catchment "Dehtáře" near Pelhřimov. There were primarily evaluated three biggest areas - fields of winter wheat, field corn and TTP.

Vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) are complex multi-layer structures whose operating characteristics are highly sensitive to variations in layer thickness and composition. They contain an active region of one or more quantum wells sandwiched between highly reflecting mirrors. Non-destructive optical characterisation techniques including reflectance spectroscopy, spectroscopic ellipsometry and photomodulated reflectance have been used to examine these structures and various components of them. In addition, the relatively novel technique of photomodulated spectroscopic ellipsometry has been examined in comparison with photomodulated reflectance in the characterisation of bulk, multi-layer and quantum well material. The distributed Bragg reflectors of VCSELs provide the high reflectance required over a selected wavelength range. Optical measurements were used to determine important information concerning layer thicknesses and compositions, which were confirmed with X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. The techniques were also used to provide important information concerning growth and uniformity, which could be readily applied for feedback to growers or for device fabrication. Novel reflectance and photomodulated reflectance measurements made on a range of laser structures designed to operate over a range of wavelengths from 650 nm to 1 ?m were used to examine the characteristics of the reflectors and the active region of the lasers. The cavity mode observed clearly indicates the lasing wavelength, and the interaction of the cavity and quantum well has been interpreted using new lineshapes. The cavity mode and quantum well resonance observed in photomodulated reflectance has been shown to provide a clear indication of where devices can be fabricated successfully from non-uniform material. The identification of the cavity and quantum well features has also enabled important information concerning the changes in structure and therefore in device performance with temperature and pressure. Measurements have also been able to provide important information to explain the variation in performance of some devices.

Potato Virus Y (PVY) infection and nitrogen (N) deficiency cause similar symptoms (chlorosis and stunting) on potato foliage. While conventional methods, including ELISA and petiole testing, require destructive sampling and a longer time to diagnose, spectral analysis can be non-destructive, rapid and efficient. Spectral reflectance for potato cultivars representing three market types, chip processing, red-skinned fresh, and fresh and processing russets, were assessed in separate greenhouse trials in response to three N rates (90, 200, and 290 kg/ha) and two PVYN:O infection levels (clean and infected) at 4, 6, and 8 weeks after inoculation (WAI). Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was able to differentiate clean and PVYN:O infected samples of red-skinned and chip processing cultivars, at 4 and 8 WAI, respectively. Overall, cultivars differed in their spectral responses, indicating the importance of studying cultivar-specific spectral responses against PVY infection in future.

A sequence of burned surfaces aged 0, 1, 2, 24, and 80 years was investigated regarding changes in the spectral distribution of reflected light. Controls were introduced to isolate diurnal and seasonal effects. The results show gradually increasing reflectance with increasing age of burn. With the establishment of vegetation a new set of absorbtion and reflectance criteria are established substantially altering the spectral characteristics. The apparent effect of a mature forest canopy is ambiguous. Diffuse and overcast conditions reduce the reflectance for all surfaces. Further work is suggested to reinforce results for surfaces with low sampling replication. / Thesis / Bachelor of Science (BSc)

No description available.

A atividade bovina do Brasil é uma das maiores do mundo, devido principalmente, ao uso predominante de pastagens tropicais na dieta do gado, porém, o alto custo dos insumos, com destaque para a adubação nitrogenada, dificulta a obtenção de altas produções de forragens. Por esta razão, a utilização de novas tecnologias que permitam melhorar o manejo e aumentar o rendimento de culturas como o capim \'Mombaça\', por meio do uso racional dos fatores de produção, é de alta relevância. O objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar o uso de dados hiperespectrais para a discriminação de diferentes tratamentos de adubação nitrogenada, e comparar diferentes métodos para obter valores de concentração de clorofila a partir de assinaturas espectrais de capim \'Mombaça\'. Foram estabelecidos quatro tratamentos de com doses diferentes de adubação nitrogenada. Foi medida a reflectância espectral de folhas coletadas em cada tratamento por meio de um sensor hiperespectral em laboratório além de medições de clorofila das folhas. Foi encontrado que as assinaturas espectrais de cada tratamento tiveram comportamentos diferentes, principalmente nas regiões do verde e do red-edge, sendo que tais diferenças dependeram da quantidade de adubo nitrogenado aplicado e do teor de clorofila foliar. A separação dos tratamentos foi possível mediante o uso de análise linear discriminante, baseando-se nos dados de reflectância espectral obtidos em cada tratamento. A obtenção de valores de concentração de clorofila da folha por meio de reflectância espectral foi possível por meio de técnicas de machine learning, destacando-se o support vector machine, como a melhor alternativa. As regiões do red-edge e do verde foram as mais influentes para realizar o cálculo dos valores de concentração de clorofila na folha. / Brazil\'s cattle production is one of the largest in the world, due mainly, to the predominant use of tropical pastures in the cattle diet. However, the high cost of inputs, especially nitrogen fertilizer, makes it difficult to obtain high forage production, for this reason, the use of new technologies to improve the management and to boost the yield of crops such as Mombaça grass, through the rational use of resources, is of high relevance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of hyperspectral data to discriminate different treatments of nitrogen fertilization, and to compare different methods to obtain chlorophyll values of chlorophyll concentration based on spectral signatures of \'Mombaça\' grass. Four treatments were established with different doses of nitrogen fertilization. The spectral reflectance of leaves collected in each treatment was measured with a hyperspectral sensor, and leaf chlorophyll measurements were performed, both, on laboratory conditions. It was found that the spectral signatures of each treatments had different behaviors, mainly in the green and red-edge regions, and such differences depended on the amount of nitrogen fertilizer applied and the chlorophyll content of the leaf. The separation of the treatments was possible through the use of linear discriminant analysis, based on the spectral reflectance data obtained in each treatment. Retrieve chlorophyll concentration values from the leaf spectral reflectance was possible by the use of machine learning techniques, highlighting the support vector machine as the best alternative. The red-edge and green regions were the most influential in calculating the values of leaf chlorophyll concentration.

As áreas agrícolas vêm se tornando cada vez mais tecnificadas, onde o conhecimento das características físicas, químicas e mineralógicas dos solos se torna imprescindível para maximizar a produtividade. O Brasil possui uma grande extensão territorial, sendo que a maior parte não possui mapas de solos compatíveis com as necessidades agrícolas. Torna-se necessário fornecer subsídios à pesquisa pedológica referente ao aperfeiçoamento de técnicas que venham auxiliar os levantamentos de solos, tornando-os mais ágeis e econômicos. Para tanto, foram traçados os seguintes objetivos: caracterizar o comportamento espectral de solos nos níveis de campo, laboratório e orbital; correlacionar as alterações dos solos ao longo de topossequências com o caráter espectral; verificar a separabilidade das unidades de mapeamento e quantificar atributos dos solos através das respostas radiométricas; avaliar a eficiência prática da técnica. O trabalho foi conduzido em Barra Bonita, SP, onde predominam diferentes unidades de solos tais como LATOSSOLOS, ARGISSOLOS, CAMBISSOLOS e NITOSSOLOS com texturas de arenosas a muito argilosas. Na área foram demarcados pontos para amostragem em forma de grade (100 x 100 m). Todos os pontos de coleta foram georreferenciados, foram realizadas tradagens nas profundidades 0-20 e 80-100 cm. As amostras de terra foram encaminhadas ao laboratório para análises físicas, químicas. Foram obtidos dados espectrais através de espectroradiômetro em laboratório e campo. Foi realizado um mapa de solos detalhado pelo método convencional, incluindo a caracterização de perfis. Através dos dados espectrais obtidos nos níveis orbital e laboratório foram geradas equações discriminantes para os solos e equações lineares de regressão múltipla para vários atributos do solo. Os atributos dos solos foram comparados com valores estimados pelas equações e os valores determinados nas análises de laboratório para verificar a veracidade dos dados espectrais e a variabilidade da metodologia proposta. Na medida em que ocorrem alterações dos solos ao longo de uma topossequência, o comportamento espectral detectado pelos sensores, se altera. A análise descritiva das curvas espectrais descritas em literatura fornece poucos detalhes na discriminação de solos. É possível discriminar solos por sensor terrestre e orbital com 81 e 40 % de acerto respectivamente. A estimativa de teores de ferro por sensores terrestre e orbital auxilia na classificação de solos. É possível quantificar atributos do solo como areia, argila e ferro por sensores em laboratório, e, com menor índice de significância por sensores orbitais. / The agricultural areas are becoming more and more technified, where the knowledge of the physical, chemical and mineralogical characteristics of soils becomes indispensable to maximize crop productivity. Brazil possesses a great territorial extension, and most of the areas do not possess soil maps compatible with the agricultural needs. Modern technological improvements signal the necessity of supplying data to soil research, especially those areas regarding soil survey, with the objective of turning soil survey more agile and economic. The following objectives were traced: characterize the spectral behavior of soils in field, laboratory and orbital levels; correlate the alterations of soils along toposequences with the spectral character; verify the discrimination of mapping units and quantify attributes of the soils through their spectral responses; evaluate the practical efficiency of the technique. The work was done in Barra Bonita, SP, where Oxisol, Alfisol, Inceptisol e Ultisol with textures of sandy to very loamy dominate. In the study area, samples were taken following a 100 x 100 m grid. All the points were georeferenced and soil samples were obtained in the depths 0-20 and 80-100 cm. The soil samples were taken to the laboratory for physical and chemical analyses. After that, the spectral data were obtained using a spectroradiometer in laboratory, field and orbital levels. A detailed soil maps was done by the conventional method, including the characterization of profiles. Through the spectral data obtained in the orbital and laboratory levels, discriminant equations were generated for the soils and linear equations of multiple regression for several attributes of the soil. The soil attributes were compared with values quantified by the equations and values determined in laboratory analyses to verify the accuracy of the spectral data and the variability of the methodology proposal. As the soils modifications occur along a toposequence, the spectral behavior detected by the sensors becomes different. The descriptive analysis of the spectral curves described in literature supplies few details of soil discrimination. It is possible to discriminate soils by terrestrial and orbital sensors with 81 and 40% of success, respectively. The estimation of the iron content by terrestrial and orbital sensors aids in the classification of soils. It is possible to quantify attributes of the soil as sand, clay and iron using a sensor in the laboratory, and, with smaller accuracy by orbital sensors.