Identification of dense boreal forest on the basis of simulated NOAA-AVHRR reflectance factors

Describes a method for identification of dense boreal forest with the AVHRR band 1 and 2 observations on the basis of radiative transfer modeling of satellite-level reflectances. The method takes both spectral, temporal and directional information into account. The idea itself is straightforwardly extendible to other surface types and optical satellite instruments. The approach is particularly promising for the new generation of optical satellite sensors due to be launched towards the end of the millenium.