ABSTRACT
The need for increasingly accurate models of the complex interactions between mankind and the environment calls for more precise monitoring of many different areas, from forests to oceans, from inland waters to urban areas. Specifically, human settlements appear to be the focus of a number of issues such as desertification and pollution as well as water, energy, and waste management. Since most of the population nowadays lives in urban areas, threats to human lives, such as diseases and man-made and natural disasters, are increasingly perceived as the causes of social and economic losses in urban areas. Using urban areas and some of their specific features as essential input information, scientists and researchers have developed models for climate change [1], earthquake risk [2], disease spread [3], and many others. To achieve this aim, global analyses, including more information than just the knowledge of urban
3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................... 35 3.2 EO Data and Urban Areas ..............................................................................36
