Date of Award
5-31-2017
Document Type
Campus Access Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Environmental Sciences/Environmental, Earth & Ocean Sciences
First Advisor
Crystal Schaaf
Second Advisor
Ellen Douglas
Third Advisor
Robert Bowen
Abstract
Forests provide vital ecosystem functions and services that maintain the integrity of our natural and human environment. Understanding the structural components of forests (extent, tree density, heights of multi-story canopies, biomass, etc.) provides necessary information to preserve ecosystem services. Increasingly, remote sensing resources have been used to map and monitor forests globally. However, traditional satellite and airborne multi-angle imagery only provide information about the top of the canopy and little about the forest structure and understory. In this research, we investigative the use of rapidly evolving lidar technology, and how the fusion of aerial and terrestrial lidar data can be utilized to better characterize forest stand information. We further apply a novel terrestrial lidar methodology to characterize a Hemlock Woolly Adelgid infestation in Harvard Forest, Massachusetts, and adapt a dynamic terrestrial lidar sampling scheme to identify key structural vegetation profiles of tropical rainforests in La Selva, Costa Rica.
Recommended Citation
Saenz, Edward J., "Assessing Structure and Condition of Temperate and Tropical Forests: Fusion of Terrestrial Lidar and Airborne Multi-Angle and Lidar Remote Sensing" (2017). Graduate Doctoral Dissertations. 341.
https://scholarworks.umb.edu/doctoral_dissertations/341
Comments
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