NASA SBIR 00-1 SOLICITATION
FORM 9B - PROJECT SUMMARY
PROPOSAL NUMBER 00-1 15.03-9245 (Chron: 000756 )
PROJECT TITLE
Crop Stress Algorithm Using Hyper/Multispectral Thermal Infrared Remote Sensing
TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
To support the development of technologies and analysis tools for scientific and commercial applications of remote sensing, Spectral Sciences Inc. proposes a new approach for improved measurement of plant water stress using hyperspectral or multispectral remote thermal infrared (TIR) spectral imagery. Using many TIR wavelength bands together with vegetation cover-sensitive short-wave bands will enable the extraction of accurate plant canopy temperature, the key diagnostic for water stress, along with vegetation emissivity information that is not presently available. The multitude of TIR bands should greatly improve the accuracy of the measurements compared to conventional broad-band systems, and would make remote sensing more practical by reducing the need for ancillary ground and calibration data. By allowing the quantity and timing of irrigation to be optimized, water stress measurements could lead to enormous cost savings in the agriculture industry. The technology would provide a valuable research tool in the immediate term and could be developed into a commercial system for crop health monitoring. In Phase I the basic retrieval concept will be evaluated using both simulations and real data. In Phase II extended field measurements will be conducted and analyzed and a prototype commercial data analysis software package developed.
POTENTIAL COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS
The approach will have immediate Government and commercial research applications for monitoring crops, forests, wetlands, and other vegetation. Development of a commercial sensor and data analysis system for routine monitoring of water stress together with other crop health parameters could lead to enormous cost savings and productivity gains in agriculture.
NAME AND ADDRESS OF PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
(Name, Organization Name, Mail Address, City/State/Zip)
Dr. Robert Y. Levine
Spectral Sciences, Inc.
99 South Bedford Street
Burlington , MA 01803 - 5169
NAME AND ADDRESS OF OFFEROR
(Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/Zip)
Spectral Sciences, Inc.
99 South Bedford Street, Suite 7
Burlington , MA 01803 - 5169