A Comparative Assessment of Remote Sensing Imaging Techniques: Optical, Sar and Lidar

Abstract. Remote sensing is a popular technique that is using in the mapping and monitoring of earth features. Early remote sensing was predominantly passive, i.e. it depends upon the sun for energy. Till the last decade, optical imaging is mainly used in remote sensing works. Over the time, significant innovations and improvements have been made in the active remote sensing which resulted in the form of sophisticated imaging techniques like Synthetic Aperture RADAR (SAR) and Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR). These advancements promoted the use of multi-sensor and multi-source data in remote sensing projects. This highlights the need to review these imaging techniques. Therefore, this review work is carried out. In this review, different imaging techniques are discussed and compared. Optical, SAR and LiDAR techniques are first summarized and then they are compared on the basis of technical specification and working. Finally, an in-depth assessment is made on the applicability of these imaging techniques in different fields.