Documentation of Floods and Fires in Middle East Cultural Heritage Sites Through Multi-Sensor Satellite Data and Earth Observation Platforms

Copernicus Sentinel-1 SAR and Sentinel-2 optical data time series were combined to document floods and fires affecting cultural heritage in remote or inaccessible locations in the Middle East. Change detection analysis using SAR amplitude and interferometric coherence, and the computation of spectral indexes using optical imagery (e.g. NDVI, NBR, BAI), were undertaken within EO data exploitation platforms equipped with validated and reliable image processing routines. The scientific experiments in the archaeological sites of Sergiopolis and Apamea in Syria proved the multi-sensor approach effective to temporally constrain the events and accurately map the affected areas.