A Burned Area Mapping Algorithm for Chinese FengYun-3 MERSI Satellite Data

Biomass burning is a worldwide phenomenon, which emits large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere and strongly influences the environment. Burned area is an important parameter in modeling the impacts of biomass burning on the climate and ecosystem. The Medium Resolution Spectral Imager (MERSI) onboard FengYun-3C (FY-3C) has shown great potential for burned area mapping research, but there is still a lack of relevant studies and applications. This paper describes an automated burned area mapping algorithm that was developed using daily MERSI data. The algorithm employs time-series analysis and multi-temporal 1000-m resolution data to obtain seed pixels. To identify the burned pixels automatically, region growing and Support Vector Machine) methods have been used together with 250-m resolution data. The algorithm was tested by applying it in two experimental areas, and the accuracy of the results was evaluated by comparing them to reference burned area maps, which were interpreted manually using Landsat 8 OLI data and the MODIS MCD64A1 burned area product. The results demonstrated that the proposed algorithm was able to improve the burned area mapping accuracy at the two study sites.