Abstract
Timely and reliable information on soils with respect to their nature, extent, spatial distribution, and potential and limitations/hazards, namely soil erosion by water and wind, soil salinity and/ or alkalinity, wetness, soil compaction, etc., is very crucial for optimal utilization of available natural resources on a sustained basis. Soil surveys, which hitherto have been conducted through conventional approach, provide such information. By providing synoptic coverage of the earth's surface at regular intervals remote sensing has augmented the efficiency of soil survey programmes. Beginning with the Landsat‐MSS data in early 1970s, spaceborne multispectral measurements from a variety of sensors, namely Thematic Mapper (TM), SPOT Multi Linear Array (MLA), Panchromatic Linear Array (PLA), Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS) Linear Imaging Self‐scanning Sensor (LISS‐I, ‐II and ‐III), Wide Field Sensor (WiFS) and Panchromatic (PAN) sensor have been extensively used for carrying out soil surveys of varying intensities. In this article, an attempt has been made to provide an overview of the state‐ of‐ the‐art of applications of remote sensing in soil resources mapping, to identify gap areas and to project future scenario vis‐a‐vis likely developments in the sensor technology, image processing, and interpretation and/analysis techniques.
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