Remote Sensing and Coastal Ecosystem Monitoring in French Guiana: Research and Achievements over a Decade

The coastal ecosystems of French Guiana are very complex and changing due to the presence of huge quantities of mud originating from the Amazon. have been studied for more than a decade. Due to access difficulties through both land and sea, the use of remote sensing has always been essential, and the understanding of the complex landscapes was greatly improved when airborne and spaceborne imaging sensors began to be systematically used. However, the implementation of remote sensing techniques has to face specific difficulties due the typical geographical characteristics of humid tropical landscapes (cloud cover, complexity, rapid changes) and to the lack of infrastruture. In this paper the geographical and scientific context of French Guiana are presented with emphasis on coastal environment, and the result of research efforts over a decade are summarized. Two important aspects are considered, namely, remote sensing data acquisition and coastal landscape characterization in the humid tropics.