Hyperspectral Ocean Color Science: Santa Barbara Channel

Our long term goal is to develop validation data sets for the modeling and interpretation of hyperspectral satellite ocean color imagery. This grant supports the addition of new optical measurements to the existing Plumes and Blooms PnB ocean color observation program. The goal of the PnB in situ sampling program is to develop state-of-the-art ocean color algorithms for Case II waters like those found in the Santa Barbara Channel. The PnB project is supported primarily by NASA. This work has filled the most glaring holes in the PnB in situ science program. This project provides a fundamental data set for the task of analyzing and modeling hyperspectral reflectance spectra in Case II waters. All PnB data are available via the world wide web httpwww.icess.ucsb.eduPnB. Our near-term objectives are to validate hyperspectral determinations of remote sensing reflectance, determine in vivo absorption spectra for total particulate, dissolved and detrital particulate materials, deploy an in situ spectral transmissometer-reflective tube absorption meter, and analyze and interpret these data in conjunction with the rest of the PnB data set. The short-term science goal is to use these data to address the importance of absorption vs. backscattering in the variability of ocean color in Case II waters.