A global poverty map derived from satellite data

A global poverty map has been produced at 30 arcsec resolution using a poverty index calculated by dividing population count (LandScan 2004) by the brightness of satellite observed lighting (DMSP nighttime lights). Inputs to the LandScan product include satellite-derived land cover and topography, p...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inComputers & geosciences Vol. 35; no. 8; pp. 1652 - 1660
Main Authors Elvidge, Christopher D., Sutton, Paul C., Ghosh, Tilottama, Tuttle, Benjamin T., Baugh, Kimberly E., Bhaduri, Budhendra, Bright, Edward
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.08.2009
Elsevier
Subjects
Areal geology. Maps
BRIGHTNESS
CALIBRATION
DATA
DMSP
Earth sciences
Earth, ocean, space
ECONOMICS
Exact sciences and technology
GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
Geologic maps, cartography
GEOSCIENCES
HUMAN POPULATIONS
LOW INCOME GROUPS
Nighttime lights
Poverty
REMOTE SENSING
SATELLITES
TOPOGRAPHY
World development indicators
World development indicators
Poverty
Nighttime lights
DMSP
satellites
maps
socioeconomic impacts
Space remote sensing
topography
data processing
global
technology
indicators
human activity
economic data
spatial distribution
brightness
imagery
calibration
land cover
computers
high resolution
communities
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Summary:A global poverty map has been produced at 30 arcsec resolution using a poverty index calculated by dividing population count (LandScan 2004) by the brightness of satellite observed lighting (DMSP nighttime lights). Inputs to the LandScan product include satellite-derived land cover and topography, plus human settlement outlines derived from high-resolution imagery. The poverty estimates have been calibrated using national level poverty data from the World Development Indicators (WDI) 2006 edition. The total estimate of the numbers of individuals living in poverty is 2.2 billion, slightly under the WDI estimate of 2.6 billion. We have demonstrated a new class of poverty map that should improve over time through the inclusion of new reference data for calibration of poverty estimates and as improvements are made in the satellite observation of human activities related to economic activity and technology access.
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DE-AC05-00OR22725
Work for Others (WFO)
ISSN:0098-3004
1873-7803
DOI:10.1016/j.cageo.2009.01.009