Publications

Version: 1.0 Approved

LDO-ID 2013-08-31-01

Title Validation and Simulation Examples of an end-to-end simulator for Optical Imaging Systems

Abstract

A software tool for a simplified end-to-end simulation of data products from space-borne and airborne visible, near-infrared and short-wave infrared imaging spectrometers, starting from either synthetic or airborne hyper-spectral data, has been developed and tested. Such a simulator is conceived as a preliminary aid tool (during phase 0∕A) for the specification and early development of new Earth observation optical instruments, whose compliance to user’s requirements is achieved through a process of cost/performance trade-off. The proposed simulator is based on three principal core modules: the reflectance scenario simulator, the atmospheric simulator and the instrument simulator. High spatial/spectral resolution images with low intrinsic noise and the sensor/mission specifications are used as inputs. Examples of hyper spectral and panchromatic images for existing and future instruments are reported, showing the capabilities for simulating target detection scenarios and image quality assessment. The Selex-ES simulator, as compared with other existing software, implements all modules necessary for a complete image simulation, allowing excellent flexibility and expandability for new integrated functions because of the adopted IDL-ENVI software environment. The simulation modeling has been validated and assessed through the matching between synthetized and true spectra acquired at ground and airborne level for clay soil mapping. A simulation of the same clay map at satellite scale has also demonstrated a more than acceptable agreement considering the coarser spatial resolution as compared to the airborne scale.

Authors Coppo Peter Mario, Chiarantini Leandro, Alparone Luciano

Type Paper for Seminar/Symposium/Conference

Media SPIE 2013 - Remote Sensing Conference (23-26 September 2013, Dresden, Germany)

Web site

Anno 2013