Spatial Analysis Using Big Data

4.3. Parameter estimation

This section describes the methods of parameter estimation of variograms introduced in the previous section. The most typical methods include the nonlinear ordinary least squares (NOLS) method, the method of maximum likelihood, and the restricted maximum likelihood (REML) method. Each of these methods is detailed later, but first, it is necessary to explain two important concepts of variogram cloud and empirical variogram. Following the discussion in the previous section, the spatial process can be expressed as

y ( s ) = m ( s ) + u ( s ) , ∀ s ∈ D ,

(4.3.1)

without observation errors. ...