Remote Sensing-Based Estimation of Land Surface Emissivity (LSE) in a Volcanic Crater Environment: The Case Study of Saint Ana Lake

Ana-Maria Hreniuc-Moroșan; M. Vais

doi:10.2478/jaes-2026-0005

.blurhash-client-img { display: none !important; }

Remote Sensing-Based Estimation of Land Surface Emissivity (LSE) in a Volcanic Crater Environment: The Case Study of Saint Ana Lake

Journal of Applied Engineering Sciences

Volume 16 (2026): Issue 1 (May 2026)

By: Ana-Maria Hreniuc-Moroșan and M. Vais

Open Access

|May 2026

Abstract

This study examines land surface emissivity (LSE) variability within the Saint Ana volcanic crater, part of the Ciomad volcanic complex in the Eastern Carpathians. Using Landsat 9 OLI-2/TIRS-2 data, emissivity was estimated through a vegetation-index-based approach to evaluate spatial relationships between lithology, vegetation density, and surface radiative properties. The analysis reveals measurable emissivity contrasts between densely forested crater slopes and exposed volcanic substrates dominated by silicate-rich materials. Lower emissivity values are associated with rocky outcrops and sparsely vegetated areas, whereas higher values correspond to vegetated and moisture-retaining surfaces. The results confirm the sensitivity of emissivity retrieval to geological and ecological controls and support its relevance for thermal characterization in heterogeneous volcanic environments.

References

Anderson, S.W., Fink, J.H., Bridges, R.C., 1995. Mount Unzen dome growth: The influence of extrusion rate and crystallinity on dome morphology. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 68, 197–222.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Blake, S., 1990. Viscous flow from volcanic domes. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 43, 97–112.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Dash, P., Göttsche, F.-M., Olesen, F.-S., Fischer, H., 2002. Land surface temperature and emissivity estimation from passive sensor data: Theory and practice. Remote Sensing of Environment 80, 17–32.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
de Silva, S.L., Self, S., Francis, P.W., Drake, R.E., Ramirez, C., 1994. Effusive silicic volcanism in the Central Andes: The Chao dacite and other young lavas of the Altiplano-Puna region. Journal of Geophysical Research 99(B9), 17805–17825.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Fink, J.H., Anderson, S.W., 2000. Lava domes and coulees. In: Sigurdsson, H. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Volcanoes. Academic Press, San Diego, pp. 307–319.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Fink, J.H., Bridges, R.C., 1995. The effect of eruption rate on lava dome morphology. Bulletin of Volcanology 57, 199–215.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Fink, J.H., Griffiths, R.W., 1998. Morphology, eruption rates, and rheology of lava domes: Insights from laboratory models. Journal of Geophysical Research 103(B1), 527–545.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Hale, A.J., Wadge, G., 2008. The transition from endogenous to exogenous growth of lava domes. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 171, 237–257.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Harangi, S., Lukács, R., Schmitt, A.K., Dunkl, I., Molnár, K., Kiss, B., Seghedi, I., Novothny, Á., 2015. Constraints on the timing of the last volcanic eruptions and magma storage beneath the Ciomad volcanic complex (Eastern Carpathians, Romania). Earth-Science Reviews 150, 83–109.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Karátson, D., Telbisz, T., Wörner, G., Dunkl, I., Schmitt, A.K., Molnár, K., Seghedi, I., 2013. The youngest volcano in the Carpathian–Pannonian region: Evolution of the Ciomad volcanic dome complex (Eastern Carpathians, Romania). Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 255, 43–56.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Knapp, J.H., Knapp, C.C., Raileanu, V., Matenco, L., Mocanu, V., Dinu, C., and Dragan, M., 2005. Crustal constraints on the origin of mantle lithosphere delamination in the Carpathian– Pannonian region.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Tectonophysics, 410(1–4), pp. 111–124.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Li, Z.-L., Tang, B.-H., Wu, H., Ren, H., Yan, G., Wan, Z., Trigo, I.F., Sobrino, J.A., 2013. Satellite-derived land surface temperature: Current status and perspectives. Remote Sensing of Environment 131, 14–37.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Li, Z.-L., Wu, H., Wang, N., Qiu, S., Sobrino, J.A., Wan, Z., Tang, B.-H., Yan, G., 2024. Land surface emissivity retrieval from satellite data. Remote Sensing 16(2), 352.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Lyman, A.W., Williams-Jones, G., Calvert, A.T., 2004. Dome growth and volcanic hazards: Controls on lava dome morphology. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 136, 129–147.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Moons, T., 1997. Report on the Joint ISPRS Commission III/IV Workshop “3D Reconstruction and Modelling of Topographic Objects”, Stuttgart, Germany.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Natura 2000 Management Plan, 2017. Plan de management al sitului ROSCI0248 Tinovul Mohoș – Lacul Sfânta Ana. Ministerul Mediului, România.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Norman, J.M., Becker, F., 1995. Terminology in thermal infrared remote sensing of natural surfaces. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology 77, 153–166.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Order no. 1964/2007, 2007. Ordin privind instituirea regimului de arie naturală protejată a siturilor de importanţă comunitară. Ministerul Mediului şi Dezvoltării Durabile, România.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Order no. 2387/2011, 2011. Ordin pentru modificarea şi completarea listei siturilor Natura 2000. Ministerul Mediului şi Pădurilor, România.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Popa, M., Radulian, M., Szakács, A., Seghedi, I., and Zaharia, B., 2012. New seismic and tomography data in the southern part of the Harghita Mountains (Romania, Southeastern Carpathians): Connection with recent volcanic activity. Pure and Applied Geophysics, 169, pp. 1557–1573.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Romanian Geological Institute, 2005. Geological Map of Romania, scale 1:200,000. Bucharest.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Salisbury, J.W., D’Aria, D.M., 1992. Emissivity of terrestrial materials in the 8–14 μm atmospheric window. Remote Sensing of Environment 42, 83–106.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Seghedi, I., Downes, H., Vaselli, O., Szakács, A., Balogh, K., Pécskay, Z., 2004. Post-collisional Tertiary–Quaternary magmatism in the Carpathian–Pannonian region: A review. Lithos 72(3–4), 117–146.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Snyder, W.C., Wan, Z., Zhang, Y., Feng, Y.-Z., 1998. Classification-based emissivity for land surface temperature measurement from space. International Journal of Remote Sensing 19, 2753–2774.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sobrino, J.A., Jiménez-Muñoz, J.C., Paolini, L., 2004. Land surface temperature retrieval from Landsat TM 5. Remote Sensing of Environment 90(4), 434–440.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Stasiuk, M.V., Jaupart, C., 1997. Lava dome growth and deformation. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 79, 137–159.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
USGS, 2023. Landsat 9 Data Users Handbook. U.S. Geological Survey, Sioux Falls, SD, USA.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Valor, E., Caselles, V., 1996. Mapping land surface emissivity from NDVI. Remote Sensing of Environment 57, 167–184.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Wan, Z., 2014. New refinements and validation of the MODIS land-surface temperature/emissivity products. Remote Sensing of Environment 140, 36–45.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Watts, R.B., Herd, R.A., Sparks, R.S.J., Young, S.R., 2002. Growth patterns and emplacement of the andesitic lava dome at Soufrière Hills Volcano. Geological Society of America Bulletin 114, 147–159.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Zimbelman, D.R., Garry, W.B., Gregg, T.K.P., 2000. Volcanic dome growth and morphology: Constraints from field and satellite observations. Journal of Geophysical Research 105(B10), 23817–23837.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Bing Maps, 2026. Bing Maps aerial imagery. https://www.bing.com/maps.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
OpenStreetMap, 2026. OpenStreetMap geographic data. https://www.openstreetmap.org.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
USGS, 2024. EarthExplorer Data Portal. https://earthexplorer.usgs.gov/.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Zenivers, 2026. Saint Ana Lake view. https://zenivers.ro.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article

Articles in this issue

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/jaes-2026-0005 | Journal eISSN: 2284-7197 | Journal ISSN: 2247-3769

Journal RSS Feed

Language: English

Page range: 33 - 38

Submitted on: Feb 2, 2026

Accepted on: Mar 17, 2026

Published on: May 21, 2026

Published by: University of Oradea, Civil Engineering and Architecture Faculty

In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services

Publication frequency: 2 issues per year

Keywords:

Land Surface Emissivity,

Landsat 9,

volcanic geomorphology,

Saint Ana Lake,

Ciomad volcanic complex,

thermal remote sensing

Related subjects:

Engineering,

Introductions and overviews,

Engineering, other,

Electrical engineering,

Energy engineering,

Geosciences,

Geodesy,

Geosciences, other

© 2026 Ana-Maria Hreniuc-Moroșan, M. Vais, published by University of Oradea, Civil Engineering and Architecture Faculty
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Volume 16 (2026): Issue 1 (May 2026)