Multiresolution Image Fusion of Thematic Mapper Imagery With Synthetic Aperture Radar Imagery

This is a AIR FORCE INST OF TECH WRIGHT-PATTERSONAFB OH SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING report procured by the Pentagon and made available for public release. It has been reproduced in the best form available to the Pentagon. It is not spiral-bound, but rather assembled with Velobinding in a soft, white linen cover. The Storming Media report number is A896073. The abstract provided by the Pentagon follows: This study was designed to demonstrate the feasibility of applying multiresolution image fusion techniques to synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and Landsat imagery. This was accomplished through the development and application of image fusion software to test images, for the purpose of comparing results, to show that information from more than three bands can be used to study surface and subsurface features in a single image. The test images were fused using six image fusion techniques that are the combinations from three types of image decomposition algorithms (ratio of low pass RoLP pyramids, gradient pyramids, and morphological pyramids) and two types of fusion algorithms (selection and hybrid selection and averaging). Based upon the composite images formed by fusing the test images, this study concludes that: small details in city areas make morphological pyramids ineffective, selection forms of fusion do not effectively combine the data, RoLP and gradient pyramids with hybrid fusion produce the best results, and optimum pyramid depth is dependent upon the size of detail in the images.