Integrating Corine Land Cover data and Landsat TM for surface emissivity definition: application to the urban area of Athens, Greece

Abstract

This study examines the potential of the combined use of the land cover/land use information provided by the Corine Land Cover (CLC) database with Landsat satellite data for the definition and quantitative correlation of emissivity with various land covers and land uses that describe a certain territory. Surface emissivity in the 10.5–12.5 µm wavelength range is derived using Landsat data and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index Thresholds method (NDVI^THM), whereas mean emissivity values for selected urban/non‐urban land cover types are estimated by integrating the emissivity image with the land cover vector data. The method is applied to the greater Athens area, Greece, in order to estimate the emissivity of various land cover types found within the urban setting. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicates statistically significant differences in emissivity associated with different land cover types. Furthermore, statistical results demonstrate that the method is very effective and can provide emissivity values of different land cover types with good accuracy and therefore can quantitatively link emissivity with surface type.