Preprint Article Version 2 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

A New Approach Combining a Multilayer Radiative Transfer Model with an Individual Based Forest Model: Application to Boreal Forests in Finland

Version 1 : Received: 9 May 2023 / Approved: 10 May 2023 / Online: 10 May 2023 (11:31:02 CEST)
Version 2 : Received: 9 June 2023 / Approved: 12 June 2023 / Online: 12 June 2023 (03:41:12 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Henniger, H.; Bohn, F.J.; Schmidt, K.; Huth, A. A New Approach Combining a Multilayer Radiative Transfer Model with an Individual-Based Forest Model: Application to Boreal Forests in Finland. Remote Sens. 2023, 15, 3078. Henniger, H.; Bohn, F.J.; Schmidt, K.; Huth, A. A New Approach Combining a Multilayer Radiative Transfer Model with an Individual-Based Forest Model: Application to Boreal Forests in Finland. Remote Sens. 2023, 15, 3078.

Abstract

To understand forest dynamics under today’s changing environmental conditions, it is important to analyze the state of forests at large scales. Forest inventories are not available for all regions, so it is important to use other additional sources of information, e.g. remote sensing observations. Increasingly, remotely sensed data based on optical instruments and airborne LIDAR are becoming widely available for forests. There is great potential in analyzing these measurements and gaining an understanding of forests state. In this work, we combine the new generation radiative transfer model mScope with the individual-based forest model FORMIND to generate reflectance spectra for forests. Combining the two models allows us to account for species diversity at different height layers in the forest. We compare the generated reflectances for forest stands in Finland, in the region of North Karelia, with Sentinel-2 measurements. We investigate which level of forest representation gives the best results. For the majority of the forest stands, we generated good reflectances with all levels forest representation compared to the measured reflectance. Good correlations were also found for the vegetation indices (especially NDVI with R²=0.62). This work provides a forward modelling tool for relating forest reflectance to forest characteristics. With this tool it is possible to generate a large set of forest stands with corresponding reflectances. This opens the possibility to understand how reflectance is related to succession and different forest conditions.

Keywords

forest model; radiative transfer; vegetation indices; individual based; forest reflectance

Subject

Environmental and Earth Sciences, Remote Sensing

Comments (1)

Comment 1
Received: 12 June 2023
Commenter: Hans Henniger
Commenter's Conflict of Interests: Author
Comment: Changes concerning description of height layers. Addition of figures concerning background information e.g. used tree allometries. All changes occur due to review process.
+ Respond to this comment

We encourage comments and feedback from a broad range of readers. See criteria for comments and our Diversity statement.

Leave a public comment
Send a private comment to the author(s)
* All users must log in before leaving a comment
Views 0
Downloads 0
Comments 1


×
Alerts
Notify me about updates to this article or when a peer-reviewed version is published.
We use cookies on our website to ensure you get the best experience.
Read more about our cookies here.