Remote Sensing

Terms of Reference

• Contribute for understanding of remote sensing data from measurements and modelling of electromagnetic radiation
• Contribute to the development and validation of algorithms for classification, change detection, data fusion, pattern recognition and other methods of processing images and point clouds
• Assessing the data quality and application potential of new Earth Observation systems in liaison with thematic user communities and spatial agencies
• Develop and promote applications of remote sensing for environmental research, monitoring and management, for the study of land surfaces, oceans, atmosphere, and planetary bodies, for the prevention of disasters, epidemics, and poverty, in support of research and public policies and in liaison with spatial agencies and relevant international organizations
• Promote the use of remote sensing in long-term environmental observatories
• Integrate global efforts through effective outreach through data/algorithm sharing and capacity building, cooperate intensively with national space agencies and ally with the International Committee on Remote Sensing of the Environment (ICORSE).

WORKING GROUPS of ISPRS COMMISSION III

• WG III/2 - Spectral and Thermal Data Processing and Analytics
• WG III/3 - Active Microwave Remote Sensing
• WG III/7 - Remote Sensing of the Hydrosphere and Cryosphere
• WG III/8 - Remote Sensing for Agricultural and Natural Ecosystems
• WG III/1 - Remote Sensing Data Processing and Understanding
• WG III/4 - Landuse and Landcover Change Detection
• WG III/5 - Remote Sensing for Inclusive Pathways to Equality and Environmental Health
• WG III/6 - Remote Sensing of the Atmosphere
• WG III/9 - Geospatial Environment and Health Analytics

INTERCOMMISSION WGs of ISPRS COMMISSION III

• ICWG III/IVa - Disaster Management
• ICWG III/IVb - Remote Sensing Data Quality
• ICWG III/II - Planetary Remote Sensing and Mapping

ICWG III/IVa - Disaster Management

ICWG III/IVa  Terms of Reference

• Help bring partners, governments, and communities together to reduce disaster risk and loss exploiting remote sensing data and geospatial information; and to help ensure a safer, more sustainable future by sharing knowledge with policymakers and decision-makers.

• Promote the advancement and research of the state-of-the-art GeoAI techniques for disaster management and disaster resilience, including machine learning, deep learning, cloud computing, knowledge graphs, early warning systems, monitoring, preparedness, algorithmic data analytics, and algorithms for human detection from earth observations and UAVs/MAVs images and videos, Geo Apps (applications), and so on

• Investigate a new generation of technologies and their integrated systems for disaster response, modelling, and mapping.

• Look into the use of geoinformatics in risk communication and strategies, such as data sharing, public engagement and participation, and social media.

• Investigate natural hazards & disaster simulation and multi-dimensional visualization, including numerical simulation, pre-during-and-post disaster and damage assessment & response, vulnerability and risk estimation, risk mapping, and 2D/3D digital representation.

• Explore extended reality applications in disasters, including scalability, localization, immersive analysis, and human injured detection from drone images.

• Investigate disaster information extraction and monitoring, including disaster environment, infrastructure and critical assets, public awareness, and how geographic decision support systems may help with disaster management and risk reduction.

• Organise technical events. For example, in the interdisciplinary field of remote sensing and disaster management, organise, develop, and conduct supporting educational activities (training courses, workshops, webinars, etc.). The educational activities will contribute to advance the education and professional development of both seasoned and early-stage remote sensing scientists and engineers.

• Contribute to open access datasets (e.g. UAV image datasets of flood) and to conduct International Disaster Challenges competitions for good GeoAI disaster ideas, including algorithms, App designs, etc.

• Organize an online catalog of initiatives, remote sensing data and platforms, APIs, SaaS, toolkits, and courses relevant and applicable in the disaster management cycle.

• Collaborate with other WGs and ICA, FIG, UN-GGIM, UN-Open GIS, and IEEE­GRSS, GEO, JBGIS, ICSU GeoUnions, IRDR.

• Develop advanced algorithms for detecting humans post-disaster and rescue using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) images.

ICWG III/IVb - Remote Sensing Data Quality

ICWG III/IVb  Terms of Reference

• Assess and report the status of scientific development and applied practices, related to Remote Sensing Data Quality, and suggest related development plans, research works, collaborations, and activities.
• Cooperate with sister commissions/societies and WGs involved fully/partially with data quality, to assist in the further improvements of Remote Sensing Data Quality Standards and Protocols, and to promote their implementations worldwide.
• Liaise with WG IV/2 "Spatial Analysis, Spatial Statistics, Uncertainty Modeling, and Artificial Intelligence" aiming the advent of Geospatial quality in all areas of common interest. 
• Conduct a theme-wise and approach-wise Inventory and classification of the elements of Remote Sensing Data Quality.
• Encourage and support scientific works that deal with the improvement of remote sensing data quality processes and workflows.
• Clarify and regulate the effects of error propagation due to acquisition, referencing, storing and archiving, processing, analyzing, reporting and other operations related to remotely sensed data, and assess the impact of different types of degraded input image quality on the application outputs.
• Clarify the quality aspects of Remote Sensing spatial data operations, resulting and inherited from raster or vector-raster operations, such as but not limited to pixel processing, segmentation, classification including deep learning, object base image analysis, image sensitivity analysis, etc.
• Encourage studying the reliability and quality measures of Remote Sensing data, in relation to the different application areas that encounter remote sensing, such as environmental monitoring and sustainability, urban planning, city smartness and quality of life, also humanitarian projects for the developing world among other areas of application.
• Assess Remote Sensing Data Quality with respect to the usage of automated major signatures of the electromagnetic spectral different phases, as much as the relations of the type to the sensors used and the area of application, coverage, visits. Sensor positions, sky clearness, etc.
• Cooperate with ISPRS Sensor Systems Commission to clarify the Remote Sensing Data Quality aspects inherited from Multispectral optical and hyperspectral sensing, Lidar, SAR microwave sensing, and their operations such as calibration and validation, orientation, navigation, Multi-sensor integration and fusion, mobile mapping, error due to cryospheric and hydrological parameters, pattern analysis, disaster assessment, and health among others.
• Organize discussion forums to investigate and thus report the aspects of Remote Sensing Data Quality for the different major areas of applications such as Meteorology, Landuse/Landcover change detection, mobile mapping, atmosphere and air quality, environmental monitoring, and agricultural mapping.
• Revise the advancements in the Quality of sub-data products, including DTMs/DSMs or DEMs, and how that affects the production, and analysis of further products, such as 3D/4D modeling and surface-based analysis.
• Initiate discussions with WGs III/1-2-3 among others to harmonize activities related to quality aspects of their specific areas of expertise.

WG III/2 - Spectral and Thermal Data Processing and Analytics

WG III/2  Terms of Reference

• Visible, Ultraviolet, NIR, SWIR and Thermal imaging spectroscopy from satellite, aerial, UAV, terrestrial and marine acquisition platforms.
• Processing and analysis of 1D signals, 2D images, 3D hyperspectral cubes and 4D spectral video datasets.
• Radiometric, atmospheric and geometric calibration/corrections of spectral and thermal data.
• Fusion and Harmonization of spectral/thermal data with other modalities (e.g., Lidar, SAR, Acoustic), a priori information and multitemporal data.
• Processing and interpretation of spectral/hyperspectral data from low-cost, miniaturized sensors from autonomous robots and other platforms.
• Detection, classification and tracking of moving objects/targets/phenomena/behavior in spectral/thermal timeseries and video sequences.
• Efficient spectral/hyperspectral data processing through parallel programming, graphic card implementation and FPGAs
• Efficient thermal/spectral/hyperspectral image classification and analysis for the consistent estimation of geo- and bio-physical parameters, mapping, vegetation analysis in agriculture, forestry, environmental remote sensing, safety and security, engineering applications
• Assess and demonstrate the potential of future or new spectral and thermal systems

WG III/3 - Active Microwave Remote Sensing

WG III/3  Terms of Reference

• Promote advanced research, engineering development, and operational use of theories, methods, systems for the analysis of remotely sensed active microwave observations of the Earth from air-, space- and ground-borne sensors.
• Promote image and signal processing methods for synthetic aperture radar (based on polarimetry, interferometry, tomography etc.) and altimeter.
• Assess and demonstrate the potential of future or new radar systems
• Focus on physical modelling of microwave scattering, geometric analysis of SAR images (i.e. radargrammetry, coregistration etc.), the analysis of spectral signatures, radar image classification, data fusion, pattern recognition, machine learning/deep learning tailored to SAR data and quality control.
• Enhance the applications in generating digital elevation model (DEM), monitoring land deformation, and assessing environment, geohazards, landuse/landcover including urban areas, nature resources, weather/atmosphere and climate, cryosphere, coastal and ocean, forestry/agricultural and ecosystems/biodiversity.
• Contribute to effective out-reach through data/algorithms sharing and capacity building, cooperate intensively with international professional societies, space agencies, application-driven scientific communities and the International Committee On Remote Sensing of Environment (ICORSE).
• Collaborate with the corresponding WG of Commission 1 to promote the development of new processing algorithms in the design of future sensors or their ground segment

WG III/7 - Remote Sensing of the Hydrosphere and Cryosphere

WG III/7  Terms of Reference

• Develop remote sensing data for assimilation in hydrological and cryospheric models.
• Contribute to error assessment in the retrieval of satellite based hydrological and cryospheric parameters.
• Assemble historical records of consistent essential climate variable for studies of changes and trends in the hydrosphere and cryosphere.
• Assess glacier and ice sheet mass loss and relationships to sea level rise with consideration of thermal expansion, tectonic causes and other factors.
• Investigate the asymmetry in the changes of sea ice in the Arctic and Antarctic regions
  Study trends and changes in albedo at high latitudes and relationships with changes in snow cover and melt patterns.
• Monitor variability and trends in surface temperature and how they affect snow cover, sea ice extent, glaciers and ice sheet volume, and the permafrost regions.
• Understand the oceans’ role in the changes and interactions amongst the biological, chemical, and energy/water cycles in the oceans and their influence on terrestrial and cryospheric changes.
• Help, coordinate, present and future remote sensing missions especially those related to ocean, snow/ice, and terrestrial hydrological observations, and provide expertise in the calibration, validation, and dissemination of the resulting data.
• Understand hydrological extremes (floods and drought) using multi-sensor remote sensing inputs and develop techniques for early warning system
• Study the atmosphere-land surface interactions for better hydrological processes understanding
• Develop strategies for proper water resources management and utilization under changing climate, land use land cover, and management practices.
  Monitor water quality and quantity; and assess future water availability
• Highlight the role of advanced/upcoming remote sensing satellite sensor (Microwave/Hyperspectral/Thermal/Gravity etc.) for hydrological and cryosphere studies
• Address sustainable development goals – Climate Action; Zero Hunger; Clean Water and Sanitation using geospatial tools
• Contribute to capacity building in the field of remote sensing applications for cryosphere and hydrosphere

WG III/8 - Remote Sensing for Agricultural and Natural Ecosystems

WG III/8  Terms of Reference

• Develop new methodologies and algorithms for improving the contribution of remote sensing towards knowledge related to agriculture and natural ecosystems.
• Test and assess new remote sensing algorithms for monitoring natural and anthropogenic ecosystems.
• Apply remote sensing for supporting precision agriculture by spectral signature in crops for smart farm management.
• Promote remote sensing methods for monitoring the health of natural ecosystems and their role as providers of ecosystem services that benefit society.
• Support climate change studies through remote sensing applications for global and regional scales dynamics monitoring and modelling.
• Provide solutions to support global initiatives related to protecting important ecosystems such as wetlands, mangroves, tropical forests etc.
• Collaborate with related academia, researchers, industry and other stakeholders
• Promote networking with other societies that touch synergistic aspects to the WG's topic
• Foster creating and sharing of Open Datasets for remote sensing data related to the WG's topics

WG III/1 - Remote Sensing Data Processing and Understanding

WG III/1  Terms of Reference

• Promote scientific studies of Remote Sensing Data Processing and Understanding with emphases on the collection of multi-scale/-platform/-sensor imagery and point cloud data, the intelligent algorithms for data fusion, and the AI and machine learning algorithms for feature extraction.
• Improve quantitative understandings on the state-of-the-art of Remote Sensing Data Processing procedures and algorithms in international communities.
• Encourage technique transfers of Remote Sensing Data Processing and Understanding technologies among research institutions, national space/mapping agencies and policy makers.
• Enhance educations through lectures, articles, reports, summer schools and workshops in the field of Remote Sensing Data Processing and Understanding
• Establish research collaborations through networking and communication among universities and research organizations regarding the Remote Sensing Data Processing and Understanding
• Collaborate with National and International forums and organization and interact with international research community (IEEE, EU, etc.) to promote the scientific studies and applications of Remote Sensing Data Processing and Understanding

WG III/4 - Landuse and Landcover Change Detection

WG III/4  Terms of Reference

• Investigate and enhance algorithms and methodologies for land-use and land-cover change mapping and/or detection.
• Further the study of remote sensing time series for land-use and land-cover changes.
• Suggest advanced solutions based on deep learning, dynamic modeling, artificial intelligence, etc. for monitoring and analyzing land-use and land-cover changes, including the context of big data.
• Further the study of the dynamics of land-use and land-cover change in different regions of the world.
• Further the research and investigations into predicting land-use and land-cover changes
• Study urban land-use development cycles and changes in rural land-use and land-cover (e.g. agriculture, forestry, recreation), based on data and information fusion.
• Foster investigations and research toward autonomous or automatic updating of spatial data bases, including using spectral and non-spectral remotely sensed data fused with data and information acquired by other sources.
• Cooperate with other Geospatial Information societies such as GEO, ICA, and FIG on Change detection based on remotely sensed data and updating of spatial data bases.

WG III/5 - Remote Sensing for Inclusive Pathways to Equality and Environmental Health

WG III/5  Terms of Reference

• Promote debate on key interdisciplinary and epistemological issues such as:

  • How can we add value beyond what social scientists refer to as "simple measures"? This involves not only the challenge of interdisciplinarily integrating rich data sources, such as remote sensing, with limited data like household surveys, but also, addressing epistemological questions regarding domain knowledge and the assumptions underlying models.

  • Despite remarkable advancements in AI, machine learning, and remote sensing over the past decade, few downstream applications exist for studying economic and political livelihoods. This compartmentalization can be attributed, in part, to differing epistemological and interdisciplinary foundations.

• Promote the integration of remote sensing science and social sciences research to accelerate the interdisciplinary implementation of the 2030 Agenda within the next six years.

• Promote interdisciplinary perspectives in integrating remote sensing and social sciences research to support the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

• Explore using remote sensing data in quali-quantitative approaches to advance mixed methods research in the social sciences, while addressing diverse epistemological contexts in studying environmental degradation, inequality, and climate justice.

• Promote scientific research exploring novel applications of historical and new remote sensing databases and methodological innovations to generate valuable insights. The goal is to support the development of integrated social, economic, and environmental strategies, focusing on multi-scale, multi-sensor, and integrative approaches to orient public policies across distinct political arrangements.

• Develop new methods, techniques, and approaches for integrating remote sensing data with demographic, economic, health, and environmental databases. Conduct studies to systematize these processes and propose standards for their implementation in national public policies

• Test and evaluate the quality of global remote sensing-derived gridded databases on population, human settlements, and poverty in regional and local contexts, and debate their appropriate use for environmental degradation, inequality, and climate justice policymaking

• Apply remote sensing methods to assess the vulnerability of socioecological systems in various regions across the Global South.

• Promote debate on how a set of Earth Observation (EO) methods may integrate new semi-transferable approaches, increasing the adoption of EO in policymaking and encouraging more policymakers and decision-makers to understand and utilize the outputs from these platforms.

• Initiate discussions on data policies, privacy concerns, and data access related to the use of remote sensing data in social science research.

• Strengthen collaboration with organizations such as the IUSSP (International Union for the Scientific Study of Population), UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), UN-Habitat, WHO (World Health Organization), and its regional offices in Africa, the Americas, Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, South-East Asia, and the Western Pacific.

WG III/6 - Remote Sensing of the Atmosphere

WG III/6  Terms of Reference

• Develop remote sensing observations (from satellite, ground-based and airborne) of aerosols, pollutant and greenhouse gasses and clouds, relevant for air quality and climate evolution.
• Improve existing and develop new retrieval approaches for deriving atmospheric properties from measurements of radiometers, spectrometers, lidars, radars, etc from satellite, ground-based and airborne platforms.
• Develop novel satellite-based methodologies for inferring new atmospheric data products, such as surface concentrations of air pollutants (PM, O3, NO2, etc).
• Evaluate and validate satellite observations of atmospheric components by ground-based measurements and networks (AERONET, ACTRIS, TCOON, NDACC, etc).
• Improve the quality of satellite observations by making metrology and laboratory spectroscopy working groups aware of the needs of the atmospheric remote sensing community.
• Promote the applications of remote sensing data in chemistry-transport model communities, and develop data assimilation schemes and multi-instrument joint retrievals, thereby supporting better predictions and emission inventories.
• Build and maintain a partnership between ISPRS and AERSS (Atmospheric Environmental Remote Sensing Society)

WG III/9 - Geospatial Environment and Health Analytics

WG III/9  Terms of Reference

• Facilitate the development of region- or site-specific GIS platforms to promote and integrate spatial analysis skills
• Promote the use of remote sensing and other geospatial technologies to address health problems related to hydrology, land cover, epidemiology etc. to understand pandemics like COVID 19 and implement multi-diseases surveillance.
• Contribute significantly to the creation of operational and research workforce with adequate knowledge in the state of art tools of geospatial technology like GeoAI, environmental data visualization and management etc., through faculty development workshops spread over various regions of developing world viz.,  Asia, South America, Africa.
• Support international agencies such as GEOSS, World Health Organisation (WHO) and other UN bodies to promote advancement of knowledge in Remote Sensing and other geospatial technologies for applications in Tele-epidemiology and precision medicine in the context of climate change
• Promote research and development of geospatial public health management systems for possible interventions by authorities
• Promote the use of GIS software tools to form hospital marketing strategies and develop programs for promotion of geospatial technology business models by integrating open innovation, design thinking and lean management principles.

ICWG III/II - Planetary Remote Sensing and Mapping

ICWG III/II  Terms of Reference

• Develop new methodologies and algorithms for sensor calibration, data fusion and information extraction from planetary remote sensing data
• Develop advanced techniques in planetary photogrammetry and robotic vision for the mapping of celestial bodies
• Evaluate and refine reference systems, coordinate systems, control networks, map sheet definitions, etc. and their standardization
• Develop new algorithms for detection and recognition of geomorphological features on planetary surfaces and study their scientific implications
• Develop spatial information systems to support extra-terrestrial exploration and science
• Cooperate with related planetary mapping and exploration working groups in space agencies and international organizations