Southern Utah University

Course Syllabus

Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2025

The Earth from Space: Intro to Remote Sensing (Face-to-Face)

GEOG 3110-103

Course: GEOG 3110-103
Credits: 4
Term: Fall Semester 2025
Department: GEOS
CRN: 33605

Course Description

Catalog Description: Principles of remote sensing with emphasis on application of photographic, infrared, radar, and other imagery from aircraft and satellites. An interdisciplinary approach. A minimum grade of "C" (2.0 or above) must be earned in this course before it can be counted in a physical science major or minor or as a prerequisite for any other course.

Prerequisite: GEOG 2800 or instructor permission (minimum grade C).

This course is designed as a combination of lectures and lab assignments that collectively introduce students to (1) the foundations and applications of remote sensing, and (2) the theory and tools used in digital image processing. Because remote sensing is a technical field, it is important for students in this course to have at least a basic understanding of computers and a willingness to learn new software.

Required Texts

Textbook
Introduction to Remote Sensing by James B. Campbell, Randolph H. Wynne, and Valerie A. Thomas
I recommend finding an older edition of this book. The 5th edition is available used for ~$30.

Learning Outcomes

The primary goal of this course is to provide students with the conceptual foundations and the technical skills to apply remote sensing for natural and built environment problem-solving applications. Through lab assignments, students will have opportunities to practice the concepts and techniques learned in the lectures. Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Describe the development of modern remote sensing and its technology.
  2. Explain how spatial information is collected and analyzed using remote sensing technology.
  3. Interpret the meaning of ‘objects’ and ‘relationships’ in aerial photography and satellite imagery.
  4. Explain the practical applications, advantages, and limitations of remote sensing technologies.
  5. Apply remote sensing technology to solve complex problems.
Quantitative Literacy Outcomes

14.0. Quantitative Literacy: Students can understand and create sophisticated arguments supported by quantitative evidence and clearly communicate those arguments in a variety of formats (using words, tables, graphs, mathematical equations, etc., as appropriate).

14.1. Interpretation: Fluent students will be able to provide accurate explanations of information in mathematical forms.

14.3. Calculation: Fluent students are successful in calculations that are sufficiently comprehensive to solve the problems. Calculations are also presented elegantly.

14.4. Application/Analysis: Fluency is the use of quantitative analysis of data as the basis for deep and thoughtful judgments, drawing insightful, carefully qualified conclusions from this work.

14.5. Assumptions: Fluent students explicitly describe assumptions and provide compelling rationale for why each assumption is appropriate. They would also show awareness that confidence in final conclusions is limited by the accuracy of the assumptions.

14.6. Communication: Students will be able to use quantitative information in connection with the argument or purpose of the work, present it in an effective format, and explicates it with consistently high quality.

Course Requirements

Course Requirements
Lab Assignments

Lab assignments will open on Canvas the day of the lab and will be due Monday at midnight in the following week. All lab assignments are credit/no credit. In order to get credit for a lab, the lab worksheet must be complete and demonstrate a good-faith effort. No labs can be submitted late. Lab assignments are worth 4 points, and your lowest lab grade is dropped.

Mini-Projects

There are two mini-projects throughout the semester which allow students to apply remote sensing techniques to real-world problems. The projects will reinforce important techniques already practiced in previous labs. Students will then answer questions about their results. Mini-projects are worth 5 points.

Final Project

Students will select a topic for a final project from a list of potential topics. The final project will consist of a project outline, where students plan the steps for completing the project; a literature review that explains past studies on the same topic or using the same methods; a presentation disseminating the results to other students; and a report outlining the methods, results, and discussion on the topic.

Potential Topics:

  • Creating a fire risk map for Dixie National Forest
  • Predicting liquefaction risk for Southern Utah
  • Vegetation phenology changes in Fish Lake National Forest
  • Land use changes and population growth in St. George
  • Changes in water levels of the Great Salt Lake
Assessment Breakdown
Assessment ItemNumber AvailablePoints EachTotal Points
Lab assignments13448
Mini-projects2510
Final project outline1542
Final project literature review18
Final project methods plan15
Final project report113
Final Presentation111
Grading Scale
Letter GradePoints
A> 94%
A-90-94%
B+87-90%
B84-87%
B-80-84%
C+77-80%
C74-77%
C-70-74%
D+67-70%
D64-67%
D-60-64%
F< 60%

Course Outline

Course Outline
Module Schedule
ModuleLecture TopicLab Topic/AssignmentChapter
1 | Welcome, syllabus, history of RS, data management | Intro to GIS | 1
1 | RS research methods | Image interpretation | Powerpoint
2 | Downloading imagery and data management | Downloading imagery | Meet with Aspen to do this together
2 | Electromagnetic radiation/ wavelengths and bands/reflectance | Building a composite image | 2
3 | Types of scanners | Using Landsat imagery | 3.5 (Satellite Systems), 5
3 | Resolution/ Sentinel | Using Sentinel imagery and mosaicking | 7
4 | Project outline |  | 
5 | Image statistics | Calculating statistics | 11.2 (Image Statistics)
5 | Image enhancement | Image enhancement | 5.7 (Image Enhancement)
6 | Indices and ratios/spectral signatures | Spectral signatures | 16
6 | Citations, references, lit review tips | Literature review | Powerpoint
7 | PCA/Tasseled Cap | PCA, ratios, and indices | 11.3 (Feature Extraction)
8 | Unsupervised classification | Unsupervised classification | 12
8 | Supervised classification | Supervised classification | 12
9 | Accuracy assessment | Accuracy assessment | 13
10 | -- | Final Project Methods Plan | 
11 | Change detection | Change detection | 15
12 | Suitability Modeler | Suitability Modeler | Powerpoint
13 | Report and presentation instructions | Final project | 

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Late Policy

Late work will not be accepted unless arrangements are made with the instructor before the due date. If you have an emergency or illness that will cause you to miss a deadline, please let me know as soon as possible.

Attendance Policy

N/A - this class is online.

Course Fees

$50.00

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.