Remote sensing (RS) is a technology that utilizes electromagnetic waves to observe objects of interest in a non-contact manner, enabling quantitative analysis of their presence and changes and providing insight into their nature. It represents a complex information transformation process, where signals obtained from RS sensors or detectors undergo conversion from data to information and eventually to knowledge, enriching our understanding of the world. Generally, RS primarily employs the images of the Earth's surface to showcase the environment. Through image processing techniques, it extracts, expresses, and displays the form and pattern of Earth objects, exploring and analyzing their features and studying their characteristics of change. Consequently, the image processing of remotely sensed data has become an indispensable means for acquiring knowledge, a crucial avenue for understanding the world, and an essential course for professionals in RS technology. This field has evolved along with the development of RS technology. At present, there are a variety of mature techniques and software in this field. However, at present, the field of RS image processing pays more attention to technology and procedures and lacks in-depth analysis of mathematical and physical foundations, resulting in a lack of systematic theoretical support for application-based RS digital image processing technology, which affects its deepening and improvement process.

This book systematically refines the basic technology of RS digital image processing, explains its physical nature through mathematical language, and improves the theory of RS image processing technology. The book validates theoretical methods through a diverse range of practical examples to ensure practical application support. With its comprehensive and in-depth content presented in an accessible manner, the book represents an innovative attempt to analyze RS digital image processing methods with mathematical fundamentals and physical essence. This book mainly discusses the dominant optical image processing in RS, which involves less microwave RS processing and needs to be improved. Nevertheless, its comprehensive and in-depth discussion of the mathematical foundations of optical RS image processing is still commendable in this field. This book is a valuable reference for researchers and educators engaged in RS digital image processing. It is also suitable as a desk manual for professionals in spatial information technology and applications.

I am delighted to see the publication of this book and sincerely hope that it will contribute significantly to the enhancement of RS digital image processing and the cultivation of talent in this field in China.

Above is the preface to the book.



Qingxi Tong
Academician, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)
Professor, Peking University, China
Professor, Aerospace Information Research Institute, CAS, China