Today’s technology offers growers a tremendous amount of information to help make critical decisions. With the explosion of drone imagery questions have come up on the pros and cons between drone and satellite Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) imagery. Don’t these two platforms show the same information? The answer is yes, but there are differences depending on your specific application.

Both drone and satellite NDVI images show plant vigor. However, in the most basic terms, it comes down to imagery resolution, flexibility of getting the imagery when you need it and cloud cover effects. Below is a quick and simple list which compares the two technologies.

Drone Technology

On Demand Surveys
Flies Below Cloud Cover
Optimized for Field Sizes along the Eastern Coast
Resolution: 1 Inch per Pixel or Less, i.e. Stress is Seen Down to the Individual Plant
Early Identification of Stress
Quick & Saving Prescription

Satellite Technology

Limited by Satellite Orbit (Bi-Monthly)
Limited by Cloud Cover, i.e. cloud cover when the satellite overflies can limit field viewability
Quickly Covers Large Areas, i.e. 1000’s of Acres
Resolution: 9 - 15 ft per pixel
Stress Must Expand into Larger Area to be Identified