TheImprovement ofTropical and Subtropical Rangelands

REGIONAL RESOUROE ASSESSMENT 91
FIGURE 4-4 Manual m\erpftlta'ion of .nhanced Land.a' imagery for land
capability a.....m.n' in ,h. Suhana'. of Oman. (Earlh Sa'.Uh. Corpora'ion)
herds, human populationa, crops, and land use at the ranch level for
very large regiona at comparatively low costa.
DigitAl Procemng Satellite images are available in digital format.
These data may be selectively enhanced to produce images that are
more easily interpreted by the analyst. For example, if the project is
located in a region dominated by bright sandy soils, the contrast at
the brighter end of the tonal range can be increased at the expense
of the darker. This type of enhancement would bring out subtle
differences in brightness that otherwise might be overlooked (figure
4-6).
A"lica6ility and Availahility ofRemote SeMing Data Remote sensing
may be the only way to acquire information about basic land
resources in many parts of the world. Mapa of natural resources
and land use are relatively rare in many nonindustrialized countries.
In fact, adequate bue maps that describe topography, roads, and
cultural features may not exist for many areas.
Conventional aerial photography is usually the preferred source
[ 1.)ltIZ ,d byCoogIe