Conference Keynote (8:30 am - Friday, Sept. 30) View Presentation
Speaker: Erik Næsset, Doctor Scientiarum at the
Department of Ecology and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences
Title: "Laser-Scanning of Forest Resources in Norway: from Research
to Commercial Applications."
Erik Næsset has been working with laser data for forest inventory since
1995, and was one of the first scientists to demonstrate the potential
of laser data from commercial scanning sensors to estimate conventional
forest properties such as tree height and stand volume. His procedure for
stand-based forest inventory has been used at an operational scale in commercial
forest inventories since 2002, and performance evaluations of the
method in rigorous scientific experiments and in an operational context
has indicated an accuracy comparable to conventional methods based on very
intensive
field measurements. In the Scandinavian market, where the method has been
marketed so far, the costs are comparable to those of existing methods
based on stereo
photogrammetry and photointerpretation supported with some field work.
In his presentation, Næsset will present the technical outline of the
procedure, the results of the accuracy assessment, and the costs associated
with the method in a commercial context.
Session 1 Keynote (9:10 am - Friday, Sept. 30) View Presentation
Speaker: David Evans, Professor in the Spatial Information Technologies Laboratory,
Department of Forestry, Mississippi State University
Title: "Forest Assessments with LiDAR: from Research to Operational Programs."
LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is now recognized as a high-precision measurement tool that has many uses in forest management.
It can be used for basic terrain mapping and tree/stand measurements. This presentation is an overview of the evolution of this
technology from research projects through operational tests in forest assessment scenarios. Projects that have been completed or
are still underway at Mississippi State University will be summarized and include: 1) an operational timber inventory protocol based on double sampling,
2) forest structure analysis for wildlife habitat assessment, and 3) stand visualization based on LiDAR measurement data.
Session 2 Keynote (1:00
pm - Friday, Sept. 30) View Presentation
Speaker: Michael
Lefsky,
Assistant Professor in the Department of Forest, Rangeland, and Watershed
Stewardship,
College of Natural Resources, Colorado State University
Title: "Lidar Remote Sensing of Forests with the Geoscience Laser Altimeter
System."
Most work on lidar remote sensing of forests has focused on the problem of
stand structure estimation using data from small footprint, discrete return
airborne lidar systems. Moving to regional, continental and global extent
problems requires developments that are largely distinct from this existing
work. First, novel algorithms for the processing of data from large footprint,
waveform sampling, satellite lidar systems has been required. Furthermore,
new techniques, capable of efficiently parameterizing regionally applicable
relationships between lidar estimates of canopy structure and field measurements
of stand structure are required. A series of studies have successfully
begun the process of addressing these problems for data currently being
collected by the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System, on the ICESat satellite.
Session 3 Keynote (8:00 am - Saturday, Oct. 1) View Presentation
Speaker: Phil Radtke, Assistant Professor in Forest Biometrics and Geomatics, Department of Forestry, Virginia Tech
Title: "Emerging Applications of Ground-Based Lidar for Forest Measurements."
Researchers have only begun to realize some of the many possible uses of ground-based laser scanners for assessing forest resources. Initial efforts have aimed at making detailed measurements of
forest canopy structure and tree stems. Such measurements, while often requiring extraordinary effort to accomplish using traditional methods, are possible with little intrusion on the forests
being studied using ground-based lidar. While costs of data acquisition and analysis remain high, many challenges for ground-based lidar can be addressed using knowledge gained in related disciplines.
This session will give an overview of the current state of applications and challenges for ground-based laser scanning in the measurement of forest resources with an eye toward possible future directions.
Session 4 Keynote (10:20 am - Saturday, Oct. 1)
Speaker: Juha Hyyppä,
Title: "Accuracy of Forest Measurements using Single-Date and Multitemporal
ALS Surveys."
The presenation will summarize methods and accuracy of ALS for forest measurements using both single data and multitemporal surveys. Methods to use ALS for individual tree height growth determination are depicted.
Presentation will also demonstrate first results of the international IPSRS/EuroSDR Tree Extraction comparison, in which international groups are using their own methods for determining geometry of individual trees.
Session 5 Keynote (1:00 pm - Saturday, Oct. 1) View Presentation
Keynote Speakers