Satellite imagery for urban air quality evaluation: using Landsat and Systeme Pour l'Observation de la Terre image for particulate matter concentration retrieval

摘要

Based on a literature review, it is known that satellite remote sending, coupled with ground-based instrumentation, is a feasible approach to study air pollutants from a spatial statistical perspective and is meanwhile a work around to the absence of emission inventory and the impracticability of interpolation modelling. Since this approach has yet gained familiarity among the researchers of urban air quality, this study of particulate matter (PM) distribution across Hong Kong over 2001, 2006 and 2011 acts as an example to promote a new framework for air quality evaluation using the integrated approach for future applications. Techniques regarding the modelling and simulation for PM concentration retrieval, hotspot visualisation for localised analysis, as well as detection for temporal change in PM concentration distribution are all demonstrated. Results show that the new approach is able to provide highly reliable spatial statistics and is capable of locating hotspots both macroscopically and microscopically. The most valuable property of this approach is that it facilitates the research in the relationship between the socio-economic performance and the environmental impacts of urban systems and thus enables urban planning and decision-making of sustainable development.