Mapping Coastal Soil Salinity and Vegetation Dynamics Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Data Fusion With Machine Learning Techniques

Coastal regions are vulnerable ecosystems where monitoring soil salinity and vegetation coverage dynamics is critical for environmental management and conservation. This study introduces a multisensor data fusion approach, integrating Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and Sentinel-2 multispe...

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Main Authors: Wen Liu, Tiezhu Shi, Zhinian Zhao, Chao Yang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IEEE 2025-01-01
Series:IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10930794/
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author Wen Liu
Tiezhu Shi
Zhinian Zhao
Chao Yang
author_facet Wen Liu
Tiezhu Shi
Zhinian Zhao
Chao Yang
author_sort Wen Liu
collection DOAJ
description Coastal regions are vulnerable ecosystems where monitoring soil salinity and vegetation coverage dynamics is critical for environmental management and conservation. This study introduces a multisensor data fusion approach, integrating Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and Sentinel-2 multispectral imagery with advanced machine learning techniques, specifically a convolutional neural network (CNN) based classification model. This approach enables the precise mapping of coastal salt-affected soil and vegetation patterns, addressing spatial heterogeneity and dynamic environmental conditions. The analysis has been conducted for a coastal region in China, where derived features, such as normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), salinity indices, and SAR-based soil moisture proxies, have been used as inputs to the CNN model. The model achieved an overall accuracy of 87% and a kappa coefficient of 0.82, outperforming traditional classification methods by leveraging spatial feature learning and data augmentation. Temporal NDVI trends revealed seasonal vegetation dynamics, while predicted soil moisture patterns showed strong alignment with observed ecological conditions. The results indicate that saline soils dominate the study area, with nonsaline soils and vegetated areas exhibiting scattered and localized distributions. These findings demonstrate the potential of integrating multisensor remote sensing with advanced machine learning techniques for coastal monitoring, providing a robust framework for sustainable land-use planning and ecological management.
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spelling doaj-art-976db1751fcc4e0c85464e1c9d3f3d9e2025-08-20T03:44:53ZengIEEEIEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing1939-14042151-15352025-01-0118142031421410.1109/JSTARS.2025.355243610930794Mapping Coastal Soil Salinity and Vegetation Dynamics Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Data Fusion With Machine Learning TechniquesWen Liu0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0684-854XTiezhu Shi1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7045-281XZhinian Zhao2https://orcid.org/0009-0004-8294-4896Chao Yang3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7724-0385Research Institute for Smart Cities, School of Architecture and Urban Planning, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, ChinaResearch Institute for Smart Cities, School of Architecture and Urban Planning, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, ChinaResearch Center for Digital City, School of Urban Design, Wuhan University, Wuhan, ChinaResearch Institute for Smart Cities, School of Architecture and Urban Planning, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, ChinaCoastal regions are vulnerable ecosystems where monitoring soil salinity and vegetation coverage dynamics is critical for environmental management and conservation. This study introduces a multisensor data fusion approach, integrating Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and Sentinel-2 multispectral imagery with advanced machine learning techniques, specifically a convolutional neural network (CNN) based classification model. This approach enables the precise mapping of coastal salt-affected soil and vegetation patterns, addressing spatial heterogeneity and dynamic environmental conditions. The analysis has been conducted for a coastal region in China, where derived features, such as normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), salinity indices, and SAR-based soil moisture proxies, have been used as inputs to the CNN model. The model achieved an overall accuracy of 87% and a kappa coefficient of 0.82, outperforming traditional classification methods by leveraging spatial feature learning and data augmentation. Temporal NDVI trends revealed seasonal vegetation dynamics, while predicted soil moisture patterns showed strong alignment with observed ecological conditions. The results indicate that saline soils dominate the study area, with nonsaline soils and vegetated areas exhibiting scattered and localized distributions. These findings demonstrate the potential of integrating multisensor remote sensing with advanced machine learning techniques for coastal monitoring, providing a robust framework for sustainable land-use planning and ecological management.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10930794/Coastal monitoringconvolutional neural networks (CNN)multisensor data fusionsaline soil classificationsatellite imagessoil moisture estimation
spellingShingle Wen Liu
Tiezhu Shi
Zhinian Zhao
Chao Yang
Mapping Coastal Soil Salinity and Vegetation Dynamics Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Data Fusion With Machine Learning Techniques
IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing
Coastal monitoring
convolutional neural networks (CNN)
multisensor data fusion
saline soil classification
satellite images
soil moisture estimation
title Mapping Coastal Soil Salinity and Vegetation Dynamics Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Data Fusion With Machine Learning Techniques
title_full Mapping Coastal Soil Salinity and Vegetation Dynamics Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Data Fusion With Machine Learning Techniques
title_fullStr Mapping Coastal Soil Salinity and Vegetation Dynamics Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Data Fusion With Machine Learning Techniques
title_full_unstemmed Mapping Coastal Soil Salinity and Vegetation Dynamics Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Data Fusion With Machine Learning Techniques
title_short Mapping Coastal Soil Salinity and Vegetation Dynamics Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 Data Fusion With Machine Learning Techniques
title_sort mapping coastal soil salinity and vegetation dynamics using sentinel 1 and sentinel 2 data fusion with machine learning techniques
topic Coastal monitoring
convolutional neural networks (CNN)
multisensor data fusion
saline soil classification
satellite images
soil moisture estimation
url https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10930794/
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AT zhinianzhao mappingcoastalsoilsalinityandvegetationdynamicsusingsentinel1andsentinel2datafusionwithmachinelearningtechniques
AT chaoyang mappingcoastalsoilsalinityandvegetationdynamicsusingsentinel1andsentinel2datafusionwithmachinelearningtechniques