• Energy Research

Over the past decades, solar panels have been widely used to harvest solar energy owing to the decreased cost of silicon-based photovoltaic (PV) modules, and therefore it is essential to remotely map and monitor the presence of solar PV modules. Many studies have explored on PV module detection based on color aerial photography and manual photo interpretation. Imaging spectroscopy data are capable of providing detailed spectral information to identify the spectral features of PV, and thus potentially become a promising resource for automated and operational PV detection. However, PV detection with imaging spectroscopy data must cope with the vast spectral diversity of surface materials, which is commonly divided into spectral intra-class variability and inter-class similarity. We have developed an approach to detect PV modules based on their physical absorption and reflection characteristics using airborne imaging spectroscopy data. A large database was implemented for training and validating the approach, including spectra-goniometric measurements of PV modules and other materials, a HyMap image spectral library containing 31 materials with 5627 spectra, and HySpex imaging spectroscopy data sets covering Oldenburg, Germany. By normalizing the widely used Hydrocarbon Index (HI), we solved the intra-class variability caused by different detection angles, and validated it against the spectra-goniometric measurements. Knowing that PV modules are composed of materials with different transparencies, we used a group of spectral indices and investigated their interdependencies for PV detection with implementing the image spectral library. Finally, six well-trained spectral indices were applied to HySpex data acquired in Oldenburg, Germany, yielding an overall PV map. Four subsets were selected for validation and achieved overall accuracies, producer's accuracies and user's accuracies, respectively. This physics-based approach was validated against a large database collected from multiple platforms (laboratory measurements, airborne imaging spectroscopy data), thus providing a robust, transferable and applicable way to detect PV modules using imaging spectroscopy data. We aim to create greater awareness of the potential importance and applicability of airborne and spaceborne imaging spectroscopy data for PV modules identification.

Over the past decades, solar panels have been widely used to harvest solar energy owing to the decreased cost of silicon-based photovoltaic (PV) modules, and therefore it is essential to remotely map and monitor the presence of solar PV modules. Many studies have explored on PV module detection based on color aerial photography and manual photo interpretation. Imaging spectroscopy data are capable of providing detailed spectral information to identify the spectral features of PV, and thus potentially become a promising resource for automated and operational PV detection. However, PV detection with imaging spectroscopy data must cope with the vast spectral diversity of surface materials, which is commonly divided into spectral intra-class variability and inter-class similarity. We have developed an approach to detect PV modules based on their physical absorption and reflection characteristics using airborne imaging spectroscopy data. A large database was implemented for training and validating the approach, including spectra-goniometric measurements of PV modules and other materials, a HyMap image spectral library containing 31 materials with 5627 spectra, and HySpex imaging spectroscopy data sets covering Oldenburg, Germany. By normalizing the widely used Hydrocarbon Index (HI), we solved the intra-class variability caused by different detection angles, and validated it against the spectra-goniometric measurements. Knowing that PV modules are composed of materials with different transparencies, we used a group of spectral indices and investigated their interdependencies for PV detection with implementing the image spectral library. Finally, six well-trained spectral indices were applied to HySpex data acquired in Oldenburg, Germany, yielding an overall PV map. Four subsets were selected for validation and achieved overall accuracies, producer's accuracies and user's accuracies, respectively. This physics-based approach was validated against a large database collected from multiple platforms (laboratory measurements, airborne imaging spectroscopy data), thus providing a robust, transferable and applicable way to detect PV modules using imaging spectroscopy data. We aim to create greater awareness of the potential importance and applicability of airborne and spaceborne imaging spectroscopy data for PV modules identification.

AbstractSoil is central to the complex interplay among biodiversity, climate, and society. This paper examines the interconnectedness of soil biodiversity, climate change, and societal impacts, emphasizing the urgent need for integrated solutions. Human‐induced biodiversity loss and climate change intensify environmental degradation, threatening human well‐being. Soils, rich in biodiversity and vital for ecosystem function regulation, are highly vulnerable to these pressures, affecting nutrient cycling, soil fertility, and resilience. Soil also crucially regulates climate, influencing energy, water cycles, and carbon storage. Yet, climate change poses significant challenges to soil health and carbon dynamics, amplifying global warming. Integrated approaches are essential, including sustainable land management, policy interventions, technological innovations, and societal engagement. Practices like agroforestry and organic farming improve soil health and mitigate climate impacts. Effective policies and governance are crucial for promoting sustainable practices and soil conservation. Recent technologies aid in monitoring soil biodiversity and implementing sustainable land management. Societal engagement, through education and collective action, is vital for environmental stewardship. By prioritizing interdisciplinary research and addressing key frontiers, scientists can advance understanding of the soil biodiversity–climate change–society nexus, informing strategies for environmental sustainability and social equity.

AbstractSoil is central to the complex interplay among biodiversity, climate, and society. This paper examines the interconnectedness of soil biodiversity, climate change, and societal impacts, emphasizing the urgent need for integrated solutions. Human‐induced biodiversity loss and climate change intensify environmental degradation, threatening human well‐being. Soils, rich in biodiversity and vital for ecosystem function regulation, are highly vulnerable to these pressures, affecting nutrient cycling, soil fertility, and resilience. Soil also crucially regulates climate, influencing energy, water cycles, and carbon storage. Yet, climate change poses significant challenges to soil health and carbon dynamics, amplifying global warming. Integrated approaches are essential, including sustainable land management, policy interventions, technological innovations, and societal engagement. Practices like agroforestry and organic farming improve soil health and mitigate climate impacts. Effective policies and governance are crucial for promoting sustainable practices and soil conservation. Recent technologies aid in monitoring soil biodiversity and implementing sustainable land management. Societal engagement, through education and collective action, is vital for environmental stewardship. By prioritizing interdisciplinary research and addressing key frontiers, scientists can advance understanding of the soil biodiversity–climate change–society nexus, informing strategies for environmental sustainability and social equity.

Abstract Global warming is predicted to affect ecosystems, particularly in high-latitude regions where polar amplification accelerates temperature rise and environmental changes. Here, where plants grow under adverse conditions, a warmer climate provides more favourable conditions for growth and regeneration. At the alpine and polar tree line in Finnish Lapland, rising temperatures are assumed to promote densification and expansion of conifers towards fell tops and treeless boreal heathlands beyond the recent tree-line position. In this study, we analysed vegetation changes in the pine treeline ecotone in six study sites in Finnish Lapland using multi-spectral satellite data during 1984–2017. All of the six sites were established in fell areas, covering the transition from closed forest stands of the lower elevations to the open fell tops beyond the treeline position. The southern sites were located in pine dominated-stands, where treelines were of alpine character. The northern sites were located in the polar treeline ecotone where mountain birch forests already dominate the landscape. We assessed shifts in the vegetation pattern of the fell sites using the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and a RandomForest land-cover classification as indicators of potential change. We did not find clear trends for advancing coniferous tree lines towards open fell tops or treeless heath vegetation, neither by NDVI change detection nor by the land-cover classification. However, we found evidence for densification of open forest stands and sparse vegetation cover in lower elevations and the expansion of deciduous vegetation in higher elevations of previously vegetation-free or sparsely covered fell tops. Increasing stand density was detected mostly in the southern, pine-dominated sites, while the northern sites indicated increasing biomass near the fell tops. Prominent changes in vegetation patterns originated rather from human impact in the southern sites appearing as recent roads, clear-cuttings or infrastructure constructions in skiing areas. In the northern sites, distinctive changes arose from human impact or from biotic disturbance events such as moth outbreaks defoliating mountain birch stands at site Karigasniemi.

Abstract Global warming is predicted to affect ecosystems, particularly in high-latitude regions where polar amplification accelerates temperature rise and environmental changes. Here, where plants grow under adverse conditions, a warmer climate provides more favourable conditions for growth and regeneration. At the alpine and polar tree line in Finnish Lapland, rising temperatures are assumed to promote densification and expansion of conifers towards fell tops and treeless boreal heathlands beyond the recent tree-line position. In this study, we analysed vegetation changes in the pine treeline ecotone in six study sites in Finnish Lapland using multi-spectral satellite data during 1984–2017. All of the six sites were established in fell areas, covering the transition from closed forest stands of the lower elevations to the open fell tops beyond the treeline position. The southern sites were located in pine dominated-stands, where treelines were of alpine character. The northern sites were located in the polar treeline ecotone where mountain birch forests already dominate the landscape. We assessed shifts in the vegetation pattern of the fell sites using the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and a RandomForest land-cover classification as indicators of potential change. We did not find clear trends for advancing coniferous tree lines towards open fell tops or treeless heath vegetation, neither by NDVI change detection nor by the land-cover classification. However, we found evidence for densification of open forest stands and sparse vegetation cover in lower elevations and the expansion of deciduous vegetation in higher elevations of previously vegetation-free or sparsely covered fell tops. Increasing stand density was detected mostly in the southern, pine-dominated sites, while the northern sites indicated increasing biomass near the fell tops. Prominent changes in vegetation patterns originated rather from human impact in the southern sites appearing as recent roads, clear-cuttings or infrastructure constructions in skiing areas. In the northern sites, distinctive changes arose from human impact or from biotic disturbance events such as moth outbreaks defoliating mountain birch stands at site Karigasniemi.