Internet-Based Spectral Database for Different Land Covers in Egypt

S. M. Arafat, E. Farg, M. Shokr, G. Al-Kzaz

Agricultural Applications Department, National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences (NARSS), Cairo, Egypt.
Data Warehouse, National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences (NARSS), Cairo, Egypt.
Environment Canada, Data Assimilation & Satellite Meteorology Research, Toronto, Canada.

DOI: 10.4236/ars.2013.22012                

Abstract

The spectral signatures of natural objects in the visible and near-infrared spectral range are influenced by the object’s physical and biochemical properties. These signatures can be compiled in a database and used to retrieve information of land cover types and their physical composition from actual hyperspectral observations. This paper describes development process of hyperstectral database of reflectance from different land cover types in Egypt. It has been compiled from data obtained using a ground-based spectroradiometer system that covers the spectral range from 350 to 2500 nm at 1 nm resolution. The database is accessible through a website http://www.spectraldb.narss.sci.eg/spectral, where the system includes also metadata that describes the site environment and measurement processes. The system provides flexible mechanisms and friendly interfaces to allow accessing the database by the non-specialized people, whereas spectral data can be sorted by sites, species or selected environmental parameters. The system presents sample results from different vegetation and soil covers. Development of such a database is essential for different remote sensing applications, satellite’s calibrations, data dissemination and linkage with other databases for scientific researches purposes.

Keywords

Spectral Signatures; Hyperstectral; Spectroradiometer; Database; Spaceborne; Airborne

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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