Abstract

We report on a significant advance in imaging polarimetry of a terrestrial area of the earth located along the Mississippi River near New Madrid, Missouri. The color imagery was obtained with twin Hasselblad cameras with mutually perpendicular polarization analyzers. Digitization of the imagery in three colors (red, green, and blue) was accomplished at the Johnson Space Center VDAS Laboratory. Ground resolution of 80-90 m was achieved by high-resolution imagery. Percent polarization was superior to photometry for recognition and characterization of farm crops, such as rice, milo, cotton, and soybeans, and of unplanted areas. Statistical analyses of the percent-polarization data permit unique classification of the crops. Atmospheric effects, space-shuttle window distortion, and viewing-angle geometry must be taken into account in analyzing the data.

© 1990 Optical Society of America