Opportunities and limitations of remote sensing for precision crop management

Precision crop management (PCM) is a newly-emerging agricultural management practice with very intense information requirements. PCM is designed to target agricultural inputs (e.g., pesticides and fertilizers) according to within-field requirements to optimize profitability and protect the environment. Eight areas were identified in which image-based remote sensing technology could provide information that is currently lacking or inadequate, but needed, by PCM systems. The current limitations for image-based remote sensing applications are mainly due to current sensor attributes, such as restricted spectral range, coarse spatial resolution, slow turn-around time, and inadequate repeat coverage.