Determination of Mucilage in The Sea of Marmara Using Remote Sensing Techniques with Google Earth Engine

Abstract

In this study, a methodology has been developed for the detection of mucilage with the help of remote sensing (UA) techniques by considering the current mucilage formation in the Sea of Marmara. For this purpose, mucilage formation from10.03.2021 to 06.06.2021 was determined by classification of Sentinel-2 (MSI) satellite images using Random Forest (RF) algorithm on Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), the Modified Normalized Difference Water Index (MNDWI) and the Automated Water Extraction Index (AWEI) indexes were used for classification. In the classification study, 5 different date ranges were determined by considering the availability of satellite images and cloud ratio. In the first date range (10.03.2021-30.03.2021), the first mucilage image was detected in the Dardanelles Strait. In the following dates, the spread of mucilage towards the Gulf of Izmit and the Gulf of Gemlik in addition to the Dardanelles was determined. Finally, in the images dated between 17.05.2021-06.06.2021, it was seen that the density of mucilage increased in the Dardanelles Strait, Izmit Gulf, Gemlik Gulf, Erdek Kapıdağ Peninsula and the north of the Marmara Island. The area covered by mucilage as of the last date range was calculated as 12,741.94 ha, and this value shows that 1.07% of the Sea of Marmara is covered with mucilage. With this developed methodology, it has been seen that mucilage formation can be detected quickly within minutes and with high accuracy from satellite images anywhere in the world.