Synergy of VHR pleiades data and SWIR spectral bands for flood detection and impact assessment in urban areas: Case of Krymsk, Russian Federation, in July 2012

Within the framework of preparatory studies for future Earth Observation (EO) missions such as ARCTOS, the CNES requires a technical vision of spectral band usefulness, and in particular the benefits of including Short Wave Infrared channels (SWIR) in future Very High Resolution (VHR) optical sensors. Involved in the definition of such systems and in the thematic testing of simulated future and recent EO data, SERTIT analyzed the synergy of VHR Pleiades data and SPOT 5 SWIR spectral band in flood detection and impact assessment within urban areas using quasi-synchronous images over the July 2012 Krymsk disaster, southern Russian Federation. This study revealed the complementarity of SWIR and VHR, the value of SWIR for flood detection even during draw-off, and the potential of VHR in detecting mud traces and impact assessment.