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LAB ACTIVITES
Canopy LAI photography using UAV
January 2018
Canopy structure, especially the leaf area index (LAI), has strong influence on ecosystem processes e.g. photosynthesis and transpiration. A commonly used method to monitor the seasonal pattern of LAI is the hemispherical photography using fisheye lens. We are testing a new approach by mounting a small-size sport camera (Nikon KeyMission 360) atop a 4-axis drone such that the canopy pictures could be taken in a more economic way.
Yun-Ju Huang
Undergraduate
Man-Hsun Hsu
Undergraduate
In the test flights in campus, we flew the drone (DJI Phantom 4 Pro) through plantations in a fixed speed of 1 km/hr. The quality of the pictures was good enough for subsequent analysis. A comparison of the pictures with those taken by Nikon D7200 + Sigma 4.5 mm revealed similar values of calculated LAI.
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