Review of Top-of-Canopy Sun-Induced Fluorescence (SIF) Studies from Ground, UAV, Airborne to Spaceborne Observations

Abstract

Remote sensing (RS) of sun-induced fluorescence (SIF) has emerged as a promising indicator of photosynthetic activity and related stress from the leaf to the ecosystem level. The implementation of modern RS technology on SIF is highly motivated by the direct link of SIF to the core of photosynthetic machinery. In the last few decades, a lot of studies have been conducted on SIF measurement techniques, retrieval algorithms, modeling, application, validation, and radiative transfer processes, incorporating different RS observations (i.e., ground, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), airborne, and spaceborne). These studies have made a significant contribution to the enrichment of SIF science over time. However, to realize the potential of SIF and to explore its full spectrum using different RS observations, a complete document of existing SIF studies is needed. Considering this gap, we have performed a detailed review of current SIF studies from the ground, UAV, airborne, and spaceborne observations. In this review, we have discussed the in-depth interpretation of each SIF study using four RS platforms. The limitations and challenges of SIF studies have also been discussed to motivate future research and subsequently overcome them. This detailed review of SIF studies will help, support, and inspire the researchers and application-based users to consider SIF science with confidence.