Denmark as seen from a NOAA satellite on 26 May 1992
Copenhagen - introduction
Earth observation satellite imagery can be used to monitor urban development and other important changes in the pattern of land use. In the NOAA images used in this case study, the resolution is of 1.1 km. In this image, Denmark can be seen on the far left.
Landsat 4 image of Copenhagen taken on 5 June 1990
The Landsat images used here have a resolution of 30 m. Their higher resolution enables far more details to be detected in comparison to the NOAA images.
In the image on the right the colours are artificially selected to enhance the variations in land use. Notice how densely built-up areas appear different to other land use.
Landsat 5 image of Copenhagen taken on 26 June 1992
The Landsat 5 images have 7 channels, a resolution of 30 m and are enhanced by image processing, which enables the viewer to explore Copenhagen. The variation in colour indicates different land use patterns.
The land use patterns of towns reflect their historical development. Through the analysis of satellite images it is possible to detect special town plans and classify functional areas into roads, parks, suburban areas, densely built-up areas, lakes or rivers.
