Patrick J. English1, Sherri L. DeFauw2, Steven J. Thomson3, and James W. Smith1. (1) Mississippi State University, Delta Research and Extension Center, Stoneville, MS 38776, (2) Biological Control of Pests Research Unit, National Biological Control Laboratory, USDA, ARS, Stoneville, MS 38776, (3) USDA, ARS, Application and Production Technology Research, Stoneville, MS 38776
Remote detection of heat/water stress in commercial cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) fields for crop water management in humid subtropical climates is reportedly difficult and error-prone. We have developed a new method for detecting field-scale heat/water stress and early senescence in cotton using thermal imagery. Images of an irrigated cotton field were acquired from an agricultural aircraft equipped with an Electrophysics PV320T thermal imaging camera having 12-bit image resolution. We qualitatively and quantitatively assessed heat/water stress in a cotton field with sharp contrasts in soils by evaluating spatiotemporal relationships among thermal infrared images (acquired from July-September 2006) and by comparing the resolved patterns of thermal zonation with mid- to late-season crop development and yield using spatial statistics.
