The use of Hough transform to mixed pixel classification

Burned forest regions have to be monitored for several years after the fire so that the regeneration processes can be evaluated. The authors assess the danger of desertification conditions ensuing in the site of a burned forest in the Mediterranean region. If the forest does not show signs of recovery a couple of years after the fire, it probably has to be artificially re-forested to prevent further erosion. Quite often, different types of vegetation grow in a burned region. Usually this new vegetation presents a deterioration of the quality of the flora of the region, e.g. if bushes develop instead of trees. The main type of forests that are common in the Mediterranean region consist of Aleppo pine (Pinus Halepensis). The authors assess the degree of presence of three classes in a region: Aleppo pine, bare soil and other vegetation, using Landsat TM images. The authors show how the Hough transform can be used to identify the composition of a given region. The method is first assessed using simulated data and then it is tested using real data that have been obtained in the laboratory