Agricultural remote sensing monitoring: providing technological support for modern precision agriculture

As a major agricultural country, my country's agriculture needs to quickly acquire accurate agricultural information during its modernization process. Since the emergence of civilian resource satellites in the 1970s, agriculture has become one of the first fields to apply remote sensing technology and reap significant benefits. The entire process of integrating remote sensing technology into agriculture is called precision agriculture. Remote sensing satellites can quickly and accurately acquire ground information. Combined with other modern high technologies such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Global Positioning Systems (GPS), it is possible to achieve timely, quantitative, and location-based collection and analysis of agricultural information. This provides strong objectivity, is free from human interference, facilitates agricultural decision-making, and makes the development of precision agriculture possible.

Crop remote sensing monitoring

With the emergence of high spatial, hyperspectral, and high temporal resolution remote sensing data, agricultural remote sensing technology has achieved breakthroughs in key areas such as dynamic monitoring of crop growth, subdivision of crop types, and acquisition of precision agriculture information in the field. Currently, agricultural remote sensing monitoring mainly focuses on crops and land to obtain information such as crop planting area, growth monitoring, yield estimation, pest and disease monitoring and early warning, and disaster damage assessment.

Basic Principles of Crop Remote Sensing

The reflectance and its combination in the red and near-infrared bands of remote sensing imagery show good correlation with crop leaf area index, solar photosynthetically active radiation, and biomass. By using Earth surface information recorded by satellite sensors to identify crop types, establish yield forecasting models under different conditions, and integrate agronomical knowledge and remote sensing observation data, remote sensing monitoring and forecasting of crop yields can be achieved.

Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics CAS Aerospace Science and Technology Group Co.,LTD - Crop Plot-level Growth Monitoring

The Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics CAS Aerospace Science and Technology Group Co.,LTD team uses remote sensing technology to identify and classify soil, crops, and weeds, and then maps these features accordingly. It provides maps of soil surface moisture content, crop growth distribution, and weed growth distribution to help users assess the severity and precise extent of weed infestation. This allows for precise weed control via agricultural drones, saving on pesticide use and reducing environmental impact. The system also assesses crop growth status, enabling timely detection of pests, diseases, and drought stress, providing a comprehensive understanding of crop growth conditions.

Agricultural environmental monitoring is not only an important technical means for agricultural environmental management, but also a crucial component of monitoring the broader human living environment. Its fundamental purpose is to reflect the quality of the agricultural environment, its changing patterns, and development trends in a timely, accurate, and comprehensive manner; to track the dynamics of pollutant residues and accumulations in agricultural, livestock, and aquatic products; to ensure the safety of agricultural products and human health; and to provide a scientific basis for agricultural environmental management. With the development of technology, the application of remote sensing in agriculture is becoming increasingly widespread. From high-altitude satellites and low-altitude drones to various modern sensors in the fields, more and more intelligent technologies are being gradually applied to the agricultural production process, contributing to smart agriculture.