Abstract
Remote sensing of ecosystem dynamics plays an essential role in the intelligence, i.e., data collection, analysis, diagnosis, prediction and decision making, for food and environmental security. A wide range of signatures in optical, thermal and microwave domains are now available from spaceborne, airborne, and ground-based sensors. Spatio-temporal data over ecosystems can be acquired at various spatial, temporal, and spectral resolutions. A number of statistical and physically-based methods have been devised to utilize remotely-sensed signatures for agricultural and ecosystems applications. This review overviews the state of the art in remote sensing of ecosystems for food and environmental intelligence, and discusses the future direction of national and international efforts to monitor, diagnose and care the terrestrial ecosystems. It is strongly suggested to construct inter-discipliary, inter-agency, and international networks for ecosystem intelligence.
