Land cover conversion and degradation analyses through coupled soil-plant biophysical parameters derived from hyperspectral EO-1 Hyperion

A number of indicators and signals that lend themselves to monitoring by remote-sensing satellites provide a warning of land degradation. These include loss of vegetative cover, wind and water erosion, soil salinization, deterioration of the soil structure, drier soil, increased reflectance, higher land surface temperatures, and changes in land cover type. But because soil and vegetation changes often occur in several areas simultaneously, it can be difficult to develop adequate remote-sensing measures of land degradation. The development of hyperspectral remote sensing has improved the likelihood of unambiguously identifying numerous soil and plant absorption features.