Remote Sensing is an extensive science, drawing from many areas for support and development. It depends greatly on the support of governments and private industries worldwide. Satellite and digital imagery play an important role in remote sensing; providing information about the land studied.
Remote Sensing Systems offer four basic components to measure and record data about an area from a distance. These components include the energy source, the transmission path, the target and the satellite sensor. The energy source, electromagnetic energy, is very important. It is the crucial medium required to transmit information from the target to the sensor.
Remote sensing provides important coverage, mapping and classification of landcover features, such as vegetation, soil, water and forests (diagram of spectral reflectance curves for vegetation, soil and water). The Kananaskis Valley has provided an environment for remote sensing studies, using satellite and digital imagery (from Landsat, SPOT and CASI).
The degree of accuracy achieved in classification depends on the quality of the images and the degree of knowledge possessed by the researcher, of the native types of species in the areas. Topographic data and a Digital Elevation Model also increase the classification accuracies. Correlations can then be drawn between drainage, surficial deposits and topographic features, in order to show the relationships that occur between forest, vegetation and soils. This provides important information for land classification and land-use management.