The School of Environment, Society & Sustainability offers a wide array of remote sensing courses. The list below summarizes courses at the introductory and advanced levels.

GEOG 3110 Introduction to Remote Sensing This is an introductory level remote sensing course and is offered during fall semester. This course broadly examines remote sensing theory, techniques, and applications. The course details the physical basis for remote sensing, and covers remote sensing technologies that use sunlight, infrared radiation, radar, and lasers. The course also explores applications of remote sensing to anthropology, environmental sciences, geography, geology, hydrology, natural resource assessment, and meteorology. Five lab exercises give "hands-on" experience with real remote sensing data.

GEOG 5110/6110 Environmental Analysis Through Remote Sensing High-resolution multispectral data, coupled with expanding computing power and increasingly sophisticated image processing software, provides a large set of quantitative, graphic and science visualization tools for solving science-based environmental problems using remote sensing data. The theory and application of image-processing techniques such as: data corrections, enhancements, transformations, and classification are aimed at specific environmental problems in the natural and human domains. Hands-on experience is gained through image processing laboratory techniques, field-based measurements and real-world science projects. GEOG 5110 is offered during spring semester.

GEOG 5120/6120 Advanced Optical Remote Sensing Optical remote sensing uses reflected sunlight and emitted thermal infrared radiation to measure the Earth’s surface and atmosphere. This course covers remote sensing theory that determines how light and matter interact. It also investigates applications of visible, near IR, thermal IR, and hyperspectral remotely sensed data. Quantitative labs make measurements that demonstrate remote sensing theory, and also work with state-of-the-art data from aircraft and satellites. Topics include modeling absorption and emission of electromagnetic radiation, directional reflectance, spectroscopy, and hyperspectral remote sensing techniques. This class is perfect for students who want to the opportunity to learn advanced remote sensing techniques and who are curious about how remote sensing really works.

GEOG 5130/6130 Advanced Active Remote Sensing Active remote sensing uses radar or laser energy emitted by satellites or aircraft to measure and image the Earth’s surface. Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and lidar remote sensing permit precise measurement of surface height and changes in surfaces over time, enabling diverse applications such as glacier movement, ground displacement, and forest biomass. SAR also offers images of the earth’s surface that provide information not available with traditional visible and infrared satellite sensors and the ability to image through clouds and darkness. This course covers theory and applications of active remote sensing using a combination of lectures and project-based learning.

Graduate seminars The School of Environment, Society & Sustainability offers a rotating selection of graduate seminars covering a variety of remote sensing technologies and applications.

Graduate level sections of GEOG 5110, 5120, and 5130 are offered as GEOG 6110, 6120, and 6130. These graduate sections require additional coursework.