Knowledge based system for Satellite data product selection

Abstract. In recent years, the use of satellite data for geospatial applications has multiplied and contributed significantly towards development of the society. Satellite data requirements, in terms of spatial and spectral resolution, periodicity of data, level of correction and other parameters, vary for different applications. For major applications, remote sensing data alone may not suffice and may require additional data like field data. An application user, even though being versatile in his application, may not know which satellite data is best suited for his application, how to use the data and what information can be derived from the data. Remote sensing domain experts have the proficiency of using appropriate data for remote sensing applications.

Entrenching domain expertise into the system and building a knowledge base system for satellite data product selection is vital. Non specialist data users need a user-friendly software which guides them to the most suitable satellite data product on the basis of their application. Such tool will aid the usage for apt remote sensed data for various sectors of application users. Additionally, the consumers will be less concerned about the technical particulars of the platforms that provide satellite data, instead focusing on the content and values in the data product, meeting the timelines and ease of access. Embedding knowledge is a popular and effective means of increasing the power of using a system. This paper describes a system, driven by the built-in knowledge of domain experts, for satellite data products selection for geospatial applications.