QLSU (QGIS Linear Spectral Unmixing) Plugin: An open source linear spectral unmixing tool for hyperspectral & multispectral remote sensing imagery

Environmental monitoring studies including land surface processes require precise and up-to-date land use and land cover (LULC) information and therefore remote sensing data/techniques are widely used and preferred in land cover mapping due to its synoptic view and high temporal resolution capabilities. In general, derivation of LULC information from remote sensing imagery is accomplished by utilizing pixel based image classification algorithms. But unlike traditional image classification, linear spectral unmixing technique offers sub-pixel level land cover information. In this paper QLSU(QGIS Linear Spectral Unmixing), an open source, easy-to-use graphical interface tool implemented as plugin in QGIS is introduced. The QLSU plugin is developed in Python allowing researchers who do not have any experience in programming to easily perform linear spectral unmixing on remote sensing imagery. A case study is conducted both on real and synthetic images in order to demonstrate the use of the plugin and evaluate its results.

Automated summary

Environmental monitoring studies rely on accurate and up-to-date land use and land cover information, and remote sensing data/techniques are widely used for land cover mapping due to their synoptic view and high temporal resolution capabilities. Linear spectral unmixing technique provides sub-pixel level land cover information, unlike traditional image classification. In this paper, the QLSU plugin, an open source and user-friendly graphical interface tool implemented in QGIS, is introduced for researchers without programming experience to perform linear spectral unmixing on remote sensing imagery. A case study on both real and synthetic images is conducted to demonstrate the plugin's usage and evaluate its results.