Published in Scientific Papers. Series "Journal of Young Scientist", Vol. 5
Written by Giulia-Laura PANTEA, Anca-Simona LACUSTEANU
In January 2017, extremely low temperatures caused the freezing of the Danube Delta, leading to the complete isolation of some villages for a couple of weeks. The area was monitored from space, based on images acquired by Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2, two satellite missions launched in the frame of the European Programme Copernicus. Sentinel-1 is equipped with a C-band synthetic aperture radar, while Sentinel-2 has a multi-spectral optical sensor acquiring data in 13 spectral bands. The spatial resolution of the GRD (Ground Range Detected) Sentinel-1 products used in this study is 10 meters, while the spatial resolution of the MSI (Multi-Spectral Instrument) Sentinel-2 products is 10 m, 20 m and 60 m, depending on the spectral band (B2, B3, B4, B8 – highest resolution, B5, B6, B7, B8a, B11, B12 – medium resolution and B1, B9, B10 – lowest resolution). The Sentinel-1/2 satellites collect complementary information that can be used for the frequent monitoring of vast areas, given the fact that each mission is composed of a pair of satellites (Sentinel-1A/B and Sentinel-2A/B). Sentinel-2B was launched on the 7th of March 2017 and it is currently in the commissioning phase. The present study aims at promoting the usefulness and adequacy of satellite data for monitoring the situation on the ground, especially when the area is not accessible by other means.
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