Detecting vegetation structure using a kernel-based BRDF model

The magnitude of the anisotropy of vegetation is mainly determined by its spectral and structural features. It can be described by the bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF). The parameters of physical BRDF models are related to the biophysical structural information. However, for a semiempirical kernel-based BRDF model, the relationship between BRDF parameters and vegetation structure is no longer as clear as with a physical BRDF model. To reveal this relationship, a structural scattering index (SSI) and a relative structural scattering index (RSSI) are derived based on the BRDF parameters in this paper. The investigation of SSI and RSSI show that they have both theoretical and practical meaning and can be used to distinguish different land cover types or to detect structural changes. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.