Chlorophyll pigment concentration using spectral curvature algorithms: an evaluation of present and proposed satellite ocean color sensor bands

Abstract

During the past several years the symmetric three-band (460-, 490-, 520-nm) spectral curvature algorithm (SCA) has demonstrated rather accurate determination of chlorophyll pigment concentration using low-altitude airborne ocean color data. It is shown herein that the in-water asymmetric SCA, when applied to certain recently proposed OCI (NOAA-K and SPOT-3) and OCM (ERS-1) satellite ocean color bands, can adequately recover chlorophyll-like pigments. These airborne findings suggest that the proposed new ocean color sensor bands are in general satisfactorily, but not necessarily optimally, positioned to allow space evaluation of the SCA using high-precision atmospherically corrected satellite radiances. The pigment concentration recovery is not as good when existing Coastal Zone Color Scanner bands are used in the SCA. The in-water asymmetric SCA chlorophyll pigment recovery evaluations were performed using (a) airborne laser-induced chlorophyll fluorescence and (b) concurrent passive upwelled radiances. Data from a separate ocean color sensor aboard the aircraft were further used to validate the findings.