Three-Dimensional Radiative Transfer for Hyperspectral Imaging Classification and Detection

Hyperspectral image exploitation algorithms typically require inputs of reflectance spectra, which must be retrieved from the observed radiance spectra. This retrieval process is very challenging under the complex illumination conditions typical of urban settings due the influence of three-dimensional structure in the form of shadows and reflections, which must be taken into account by the algorithms. In order to advance the state of the art on this problem, MIT Lincoln Laboratory recently conducted an airborne data collection experiment in a light urban environment that included hyperspectral, laser radar, and pan-chromatic modalities. A comprehensive ground truth data set was collected and extensive efforts were directed at sensor characterization to enable the development of hyperspectral exploitation algorithms. Additionally, the laboratory is developing an extremely compact but high performance imaging spectrometer that will be ideal for the data collections required by this new image processing paradigm.