High Chlorophyll-a Areas along the Western Coast of South Sulawesi-Indonesia during the Rainy Season Revealed by Satellite Data

Anindya Wirasatriya,Fatwa Ramdani,Lilik Maslukah,Iskhaq Iskandar,Raden Dwi Susanto,Joga Dharma Setiawan,Abd Rasyid Jalil,Ardiansyah Desmont Puryajati,Kunarso Kunarso

doi:10.3390/rs13234833

Abstract

The southern coast of South Sulawesi-Indonesia is known as an upwelling area occurring during dry season, which peaks in August. This upwelling area is indicated by high chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentrations due to a strong easterly wind-induced upwelling. However, the investigation of Chl-a variability is less studied along the western coast of South Sulawesi. By taking advantages of remote sensing data of Chl-a, sea surface temperature, surface wind, and precipitation, the present study firstly shows that along the western coast of South Sulawesi, there are two areas, which have high primary productivity occurring during the rainy season. The first area is at 119.0° E–119.5° E; 3.5° S–4.0° S, while the second area is at 119.0° E–119.5° E; 3.5° S–4.0° S. The maximum primary productivity in the first (second) area occurs in April (January). The generating mechanism of the high primary productivity along the western coast of South Sulawesi is different from its southern coast. The presence of river runoff in these two areas may bring anthropogenic organic compounds during the peak of rainy season, resulting in increased Chl-a concentration.

Highlights

We present the spatial distribution of Chl-a, sea surface temperature (SST), and surface wind along the western coast of South Sulawesi in August (Figure 2)
By taking advantage of blended products of satellite-based Chl-a data, we revealed the spatial and temporal variation of the Chl-a along the western coast of South Sulawesi
Two areas have been identified as high primary productivity areas occurring during the rainy season

Summary

Introduction

Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) is an indicator for phytoplankton biomass, which becomes the most important driver of ocean ecosystem health and productivity. As the first trophic level, phytoplankton biomass transfers both material and energy to higher-trophic-level organisms. As a connection of food chain sequence, Chl-a concentration determines the biomass of fish and regulates the fish catch production in an area. Chl-a concentration corresponds to the higher catch of fishes. Welliken et al [1] reported

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Conclusion