THE USE OF MULTI -TEMPORAL SATE LITE DATA IN ASSESSING URBAN CHANGES IN ABUJA-NIGERIA

Abstract

Management and planning of urban space requires spatially accurate and timely information on land use and changing pattern monitoring provide planners and decision makers with required information about the current state of development and the nature of changes that have occurred. Remote sensing provides vital tools which can be applied in the analysis at the district and as well as the city level. Remote sensing becomes useful because it provides synoptic view and multitemporal land uses/land cover data that are often required. Though often used only for identifying objects. This study evaluates the effectiveness of the use of remote sensing data (satellite images) in assessing the land use change dynamics within the study area (i.e. Abuja phase 1) from 1976 to 2001. This study attempts to determine urban change in Abuja FCC using satellite remote sensing data collected at three different times. The study area covers approximately 51.412km2 of the Phase 1 consist of Wuse, Garki, Asokoro and Central Business Districts. The time series satellite images of urban changes used include; LandSat MSS acquired in 976, LandSat TM acquired in 1987, SPOT XS OF 1994 and LandSat ETM acquired in 2001. The data were classified into 'built-up' and 'non built-up' areas. This was reclassified in the GIS to show only those classes that represent urbanized land. Then make comparison of the years to show the extent of urban growth/change over the last twenty five years. The urban expansion were mapped within the GIS environment, and neighborhood statistics in order to show the to calculate the area of new growth were calTied out. The quantitative results through GIS data collection and analysis, and visual detection of urban change have shown that urban change is a part of urbanization processes in Abuja. The increase in built-up landuse was visible and result shows increase in the percentage of urban land in 1976 - 2001 constituted approximately 0.29%, 29.16%, 74.33% and 95.15% of the totallanduse change of the study area. The result of the time series analysis revealed that Abuja FCC has urbanised rapidly over the last twenty five years