Orthorectified True Color and Infrared Coastal Imagery of Kachemak Bay

2008 imagery includes true color (RGB) and infrared (IR) orthorectified mosaic tiles of Kachemak Bay, Alaska. The dataset was collected by the NOAA Remote Sensing Division using an Applanix Digital Sensor System from a nominal altitude of 5,000 feet. It was produced for NOAA's Integrated Ocean and Coastal Mapping (IOCM) program to support research on airborne digital imagery standards.

Use Cases

• Analyze land-water boundaries using the 0.5-meter ground sample distance (GSD) in the true color (prefix C) tiles.
• Detect vegetation or thermal signatures by comparing features in the infrared (prefix R) tiles acquired with an 850 nm cut-on filter.
• Assess orthorectification and mosaicing techniques on the seamless .TIF image tiles.
• Evaluate the impact of minimal color balancing and lack of histogram stretching on image analysis.
• Study cloud cover presence and its effect on coastal imagery interpretation.

Strengths

• High-resolution imagery with a ground sample distance of 0.5 meters per pixel.
• Provides dual spectral bands: true color (RGB) and infrared (IR) for comparative analysis.

Limitations

• Clouds may be present in the imagery, obstructing ground features.
• Mosaic data have not been histogram stretched and only minimal color balancing was performed, potentially affecting visual consistency.
• Single-year temporal coverage from 2008, limiting temporal analysis.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Ocean Service National Geodetic Survey (NOS/NGS) Integrated Ocean and Coastal Mapping (IOCM) Product.

Collection Method

Imagery acquired from a nominal altitude of 5,000 feet AGL using an Applanix Digital Sensor System (DSS), then orthorectified and mosaiced.

Time Range

2008

Geography

Kachemak Bay, Alaska