LAI DETERMINATION IN LiDAR DATA ANALYSIS

Abstract

The assessment of the forest biomass is a fundamental cognitive process for the characterization of forest ecosystems and for a rational management of wood resources. LAI is a widely used index to describe the photosynthetic surface of the vegetation and to model the carbon cycle in the forests. In this context the airborne laser scanning technology (LiDAR) is applied in the forestry field even though it is mainly used as a topographic instrument. This paper proposes a method based on Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) data for the automatic estimation of the Leaf Area Index (LAI) over vast forest areas.