Data Fusion for Multi-scale Colour 3d Satellite Image Generation and Global 3d Visualization

This paper presents an automatic system for generating multi-scale colour 3D satellite images and dynamic visualization of 3D images through the Internet. Medium-resolution satellite images such as Landsat 7 and high-resolution satellite images such as Ikonos or QuickBird are the data sources for the multi-scale 3D images. New image fusion, colour enhancement and stereoscopy algorithms are developed for the generation of multi-scale colour 3D satellite images. Latest Internet technologies are integrated into the system for fast and dynamic visualization of colour 3D images at different scales. The concept of the 3D satellite image generation and the on-line dynamic visualization are presented. Since Landsat imagery has a global coverage and the Ikonos and QuickBird images can be acquired quickly for the areas of interest, the generation and on-line visualization of global colour 3D satellite images at different scales is possible with this new system. Different 3D objects on the Earth’s surface from mountain ranges, such as Rocky Mountains, to individual family houses and trees can be dynamically visualized and analyzed through the Internet across the world. This new system has a great potential to upgrade the state-of-the-art on-line mapping technologies such as Goolge Maps and/or MapQuest for global colour 3D satellite image visualization.