Combining Luojia1-01 Nighttime Light and Points-of-Interest Data for Fine Mapping of Population Spatialization Based on the Zonal Classification Method

Fine-scale population spatial distribution plays an important role in urban microcosmic research, influencing infrastructure placement, emergency evacuation management, business decisions, and urban planning. In the past, nighttime light (NTL) data were generally used to map the spatial distribution of the population at a large scale because of their low spatial resolution. The new generation of Luojia1-01 NTL data can be used for fine-scale social and economic analysis with its high spatial resolution and quantitative range. However, due to the geometry and background noise of the data themselves, the accuracy of the original NTL data is still low. Points-of-interest (POI) also can be used to map the population spatialization, but the indicative relationship between the POI and population is not clear, especially in rural and urban areas with different landscape structures. To solve the above-mentioned problems, this study proposes an improved nighttime light (INTL) index to better use the Luojia1-01 NTL data. Meanwhile, a zonal classification model based on INTL and impervious surface area is proposed to distinguish urban and rural areas. Compared with previous research and existing datasets, our result had the highest accuracy (R-2 = 0.86). This study explains that the INTL index is applicable to population spatialization research with the emergence of high-resolution and multispectral NTL satellite data. Moreover, the zonal classification model in this research can significantly improve the accuracy of population spatialization in rural areas. This study provides a possible way to use NTL and POI data in other social and economic spatialization research.