Lab exercise 5, due right before the class on September 28, 2005
EES5053: Remote Sensing. Earth and Environmental Science, UTSA
http://www.utsa.edu/LRSG/

Student Name: ___________________

Continue starting with ENVI
 
Objective: Continue to learn basic operations (raster and vector, link) in ENVI.
 

Question 1, repeat the Step 1 to 3, and explain the differences of three windows (Main, Zoom, and Scroll)   

Step 4, Now, you will load the vector file (road.shp) and overlaying on the image as you did in ArcGIS. In the main ENVI menu, click Vector à Open Vector File, navigate to your Data\GIS subdirectory, select road.shp, click Open. A new window called Import Vector Files Parameters is popup. A new name roads_.evf (EVNI vector file) is automatically assigned (you may change to what you want but keep the .evf extension) and the original coordinate system is automatically read: Projection, Datum, Units. Please compare them with what you get from Question 2 of Lab 4. If they are not the same, you can correct them. otherwise, click OK,  then a Available Vectors List window is popup. This window is similar to the Available Bands List window where image files are uploaded through it. ArcGIS is much convenient because both vector and image files are opened through one same interface. this is why ArcGIS (or GIS) is better to organize and operate vector and raster layers than image processing software.

    Step 5, In the Available Vectors List window, select the roads.shp, click Load Selected, and a small window will popup to ask you which window you would like to load your vector file to. Let's first select New Vector Window, click OK. A vector window #1 is popup. You should see road system as you see in the ArcGIS. To see the "Identify" information window, click Options à Vector Information. By clicking any road in this window, you will see the road information will be shown in the Vector Information window. You can zoom in by clicking, dragging, and releasing the middle button of your mouse. to zoom out by clicking your right button of your mouse, select either Previous Range or Reset Range. After you get familiar with these operations and others in this vector window, you may close this window.

    Step 6, In the Available Vectors List window, click Load Selected, and click Display #2, you will load the roads on the false-color image, and in the same time, a Vector Parameter #2 window will be popup. You can still find the road information by click Options à Vector Information. Please familiar yourself with other functionalities relating to a vector layer.

    Step 7, Now, using what you have learned, to load the orthorectified image onto a Display window #3, and overlaying the vector file (road) on the top of it. and then change color of roads from white to red (by click the right button of your mouse on the white (next to the Current Layer) and select the red color). click Apply, you will see they looks like the figure below.

                    

    Step 8, Now please close both the Vector Parameter #2 and #3 windows. When you need them, you can always load them easily. In ArcGIS as you did, you can actually easily put one image on top of another. But in ENVI, you can not, though you can still link them. In Step 2 of Lab 4, you linked the Display #1 and Display #2 using Link Display tool under Tools. but to link the Display #3 and Display #2, you can not use the Link Display tool, you need the Geographic Link. Furthermore, since the huge difference of resolution between the two images, you are especially encouraging to test the link by moving your mouse in the 1 meter image (Display #3), while look at the movement through the Zoom window of the 30 meter image (Display #2). 

Question 2, Please try both the link tools and explain why you need the Geographic Link

    Step 9,  Lets take the UTSA campus as a focus area (I hope you can find it). In the Display #3 (orthophoto image), if you point your mouse to the Sombrilla of Central Plaza, in front of the library. Moving your mouse on the Sombrilla, and watch the movement in the Zoom window of Display #2. You will see the Sombrilla is only 2 or 3 pixels (dark color) on the ETM+ image. 

Question 3, Please measure the perimeter (m) and area (m2) of the Sombrilla using the measurement tool (hint, use Tools-> Measurement Tool in the main window, change Type to Polygon, Units to meters). How many pixels does the Sombrilla approximately equal to in both the 1 meter and 30 meters images?

    Step 10, Enlarge your Zoom window of Display Window #2, find the campus area similar to the figure below. I have made some region of interests (ROIs) in different colors: Red, Blue, Maroon, Yellow, and Green. It is impossible for you to tell what each of this area represents from the 30 meter resolution image. But if you point your mouse to any of this area, and watch the linking area in the 1 meter resolution image (Dipsplay Window #3). You should be able to find what they are. This is one way and an major way for you to find a training site, when we do supervised image classification, while you can not go to the field for a in situ observation.

Question 4, What does each of the five colors represent in the real world after you link them with the 1 meter resolution image?