Rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection technique

Abstract In the last decades, the availability of multi-source, multi-scale, and multi-resolution remote sensing data and the consequent progress of processing techniques brought a significant positive impact for landslide detection. As a result, nowadays also public institutions dealing with geo-ha...

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Main Authors: Rosa Coluzzi, Angela Perrone, Caterina Samela, Vito Imbrenda, Salvatore Manfreda, Letizia Pace, Maria Lanfredi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-02-01
Series:Scientific Reports
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-89542-8
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author Rosa Coluzzi
Angela Perrone
Caterina Samela
Vito Imbrenda
Salvatore Manfreda
Letizia Pace
Maria Lanfredi
author_facet Rosa Coluzzi
Angela Perrone
Caterina Samela
Vito Imbrenda
Salvatore Manfreda
Letizia Pace
Maria Lanfredi
author_sort Rosa Coluzzi
collection DOAJ
description Abstract In the last decades, the availability of multi-source, multi-scale, and multi-resolution remote sensing data and the consequent progress of processing techniques brought a significant positive impact for landslide detection. As a result, nowadays also public institutions dealing with geo-hazard management worldwide regularly use satellite data and products in landslide investigations. Due to the complexity of the phenomenon which might involve the displacement of massive rocks, soil, and both wet and dry vegetation from hillslopes, and the significant impact on the safety of the population and road infrastructure, the development of specific procedures for the rapid detection of landslides is extremely challenging. This is particularly important in the first phases of landslide risk management to evaluate the extension of the area involved by the movement and proceed with an initial delimitation of the so-called alarm zone, where preventive evacuation must be applied. In this study, the wide-ranging Tasseled Cap Transformation (TCT) is proposed as a not-sophisticated and rapid method able to detect different land-change features simultaneously by processing only two (pre- and post-event) Sentinel-2 images. The RGB color composite image obtained by stacking δTCTBrightness, δTCTGreenness, and δTCTWetness, as the intensity of red (R), green (G) and blue (B) was able to provide information on landscape changes supported by the physical nature of the TCT indices, by associating the colors to the physical characteristics of the changes. The method tested over the Pomarico site in Basilicata region (Southern Italy), was able to define the footprint of a landslide occurred in 2019 with a good accuracy (ACC = 0.95). Therefore, the proposed procedure is effective to detect landslides involving land-surface spectral changes (the majority), without the need of additional in-situ information. Furthermore, the free availability of the Sentinel-2 database and its frequent revisit times guarantee its global exportability.
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spelling doaj-art-50d784d1285c4fb782a95ff65906c4902025-02-09T12:35:14ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-02-0115111610.1038/s41598-025-89542-8Rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection techniqueRosa Coluzzi0Angela Perrone1Caterina Samela2Vito Imbrenda3Salvatore Manfreda4Letizia Pace5Maria Lanfredi6Institute of Methodologies for Environmental Analysis, National Research Council of Italy (IMAA-CNR)Institute of Methodologies for Environmental Analysis, National Research Council of Italy (IMAA-CNR)Institute of Methodologies for Environmental Analysis, National Research Council of Italy (IMAA-CNR)Institute of Methodologies for Environmental Analysis, National Research Council of Italy (IMAA-CNR)Department of Civil, Building and Environmental Engineering, University of Naples Federico IIDepartment of Earth and Geoenvironmental Sciences, University of Bari Aldo MoroInstitute of Methodologies for Environmental Analysis, National Research Council of Italy (IMAA-CNR)Abstract In the last decades, the availability of multi-source, multi-scale, and multi-resolution remote sensing data and the consequent progress of processing techniques brought a significant positive impact for landslide detection. As a result, nowadays also public institutions dealing with geo-hazard management worldwide regularly use satellite data and products in landslide investigations. Due to the complexity of the phenomenon which might involve the displacement of massive rocks, soil, and both wet and dry vegetation from hillslopes, and the significant impact on the safety of the population and road infrastructure, the development of specific procedures for the rapid detection of landslides is extremely challenging. This is particularly important in the first phases of landslide risk management to evaluate the extension of the area involved by the movement and proceed with an initial delimitation of the so-called alarm zone, where preventive evacuation must be applied. In this study, the wide-ranging Tasseled Cap Transformation (TCT) is proposed as a not-sophisticated and rapid method able to detect different land-change features simultaneously by processing only two (pre- and post-event) Sentinel-2 images. The RGB color composite image obtained by stacking δTCTBrightness, δTCTGreenness, and δTCTWetness, as the intensity of red (R), green (G) and blue (B) was able to provide information on landscape changes supported by the physical nature of the TCT indices, by associating the colors to the physical characteristics of the changes. The method tested over the Pomarico site in Basilicata region (Southern Italy), was able to define the footprint of a landslide occurred in 2019 with a good accuracy (ACC = 0.95). Therefore, the proposed procedure is effective to detect landslides involving land-surface spectral changes (the majority), without the need of additional in-situ information. Furthermore, the free availability of the Sentinel-2 database and its frequent revisit times guarantee its global exportability.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-89542-8Landslide detectionOptical imagesChange detectionSentinel2Tasseled cap transformation (TCT)
spellingShingle Rosa Coluzzi
Angela Perrone
Caterina Samela
Vito Imbrenda
Salvatore Manfreda
Letizia Pace
Maria Lanfredi
Rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection technique
Scientific Reports
Landslide detection
Optical images
Change detection
Sentinel2
Tasseled cap transformation (TCT)
title Rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection technique
title_full Rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection technique
title_fullStr Rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection technique
title_full_unstemmed Rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection technique
title_short Rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection technique
title_sort rapid landslide detection from free optical satellite imagery using a robust change detection technique
topic Landslide detection
Optical images
Change detection
Sentinel2
Tasseled cap transformation (TCT)
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-89542-8
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