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Masks

Masks are pixel constraints. They are commonly used for clouds, shadows, water, vegetation, atmospheric artifacts, sensor errors, outliers, or areas of interest.

Fusion uses two related mask concepts:

  • Image masks belong to a source image. When an image mask is used in processing, it automatically filters pixels for downstream source-derived work such as map rendering, derived products, and dataset finalization.
  • Layer masks are V2 mask layers produced by processing operations such as threshold, mask, invert, union, intersect, or extract class. They are normal derived layers: they can be displayed, inspected, and used as inputs to later operations. They do not replace image masks unless a workflow explicitly promotes or applies them as source-level constraints.

The default pipeline for source data is:

image data -> image masks used in processing -> downstream products

Find masks​

Open Catalog, switch to the Process lens, expand a source, and open Masks.

The Masks section is source-specific. It appears for compatible image-backed sources.

Import masks​

In the Masks section, click the import button. The import dialog supports single-band TIF and ENVI mask files.

Mask import rules:

  • Any non-zero pixel value is treated as part of the mask region.
  • Mask dimensions must exactly match the source image dimensions.
  • A single imported mask can be named in the dialog.
  • Multiple imported masks use names derived from the uploaded files.

After import, the mask appears in the source's Masks section.

Processing​

An image mask is used downstream when Use in processing is on. Turning it off keeps the mask available, but downstream products ignore it.

The mask Effect controls how the mask filters pixels:

  • Exclude masked pixels: pixels inside the mask are removed from processing.
  • Keep masked pixels: only pixels inside the mask continue through processing.

The source mask list shows whether each image mask is used or ignored by processing.

Display​

The Masks section has a section-level visibility control when masks are applicable to the active view. Each mask row also has its own visibility control.

Visibility controls only show or hide the overlay. They do not change whether the mask is used in processing.

Mask properties​

Select a mask to open it in the Inspector. You can edit:

  • Name: display name for the mask.
  • Type: cloud, shadow, vegetation, water, atmospheric, or other.
  • Use in processing: whether the image mask filters downstream products.
  • Effect: whether the mask excludes masked pixels or keeps only masked pixels.
  • Show overlay: whether the mask is displayed visually.
  • Opacity: overlay opacity.

Mask context menu​

Right-click a mask to change processing usage, effect, or type, rename the mask, or delete it.

You can also create a mask from labels by right-clicking one or more labels and choosing Create mask.