Infrared Images

2004 IR













2005 IR














2009 IR













In order to get an even better view and understanding of the destruction in Indonesia, we must see past what the human eye can see, in a quite literal sense. In ENVI, we chose to look at the infrared bands. To be more precise, in the RGB scale, instead of looking at the red, green and blue bands, we placed one visible band, (band 3) in the red, band 5 in the green and band 4 in the blue, both of which are infrared.

Once this image was loaded, we produced our infrared images which would more clearly show the destruction and shows us what we cannot see with the human eye. When looking at the images in Infrared, the heat of the earth's surface is captured. When comparing the 2004 image to the 2005 image, the evidence of the tsunami's path is very clear, devastating the coast of Banda Aceh and flowing through the lowlands into Lhonga. The blue areas in the 2005 image show the destruction, for these are cool places that aren't giving off heat; it is land left in ruin. These areas are highlighted along the coastlines especially in Banda Aceh and Lhonga, where one can witness the removal of entire towns. When looking North, at the island of Pulau Peunasu the blue is highlighted deep into the land and shows the path the tsunami took on it's south shore.

The 2009 image captures how Banda Aceh has recovered from the Tsunami. At a quick glance one can see how the vegetation has returned and the reconstruction of the coastline has retained its linear form. Take a close look and there is evidence of new rebuilding and relocation of people. It looks like there are more areas devoted to agriculture closer to the coasts, while cities and towns seem to have been rebuilt at higher elevations and further from the coast.