The identification of rice fields using multi-temporal ERS-1 C band SAR data

Abstract In this paper, an approach for the use of spaceborne SAR data for rice field identification, as well as for land use classification, is demonstrated, by using multitemporal data acquired over the Ohgata-mura area, Akita, Japan with ERS-1 C-band SAR, in 1992. Two techniques for reducing the influence of speckle on the accuracy of rice field identification were tested. A comparison of the SAR results with land use survey data collected in 1993, and with Landsat TM data, shows the potential of the present approach.