Coastal and Inland Aquatic Data Products for the Hyperspectral Infrared Imager (HyspIRI)

The HyspIRI Aquatic Studies Group (HASG) has developed a conceptual list of data products for the HyspIRI mission to support aquatic remote sensing of coastal and inland waters. These data products were based on mission capabilities, characteristics, and expected performance. The topic of coastal and inland water remote sensing is very broad. Thus, this report focuses on aquatic data products to keep the scope of this document manageable. The HyspIRI mission requirements already include the global production of surface reflectance and temperature. Atmospheric correction and surface temperature algorithms, which are critical to aquatic remote sensing, are covered in other mission documents. Hence, these algorithms and their products were not evaluated in this report. In addition, terrestrial products (e.g., land use land cover, dune vegetation, and beach replenishment) were not considered. It is recognized that coastal studies are inherently interdisciplinary across aquatic and terrestrial disciplines. However, products supporting the latter are expected to already be evaluated by other components of the mission. The coastal and inland water data products that were identified by the HASG, covered six major environmental and ecological areas for scientific research and applications: wetlands, shoreline processes, the water surface, the water column, bathymetry and benthic cover types. Accordingly, each candidate product was evaluated for feasibility based on the HyspIRI mission characteristics and whether it was unique and relevant to the HyspIRI science objectives

Remote sensing techniques for studying coastal ecosystems: An overview

Advances in sensor design and data analysis techniques are making remote sensing systems practical and attractive for use in research and management of coastal ecosystems, such as wetlands, estuaries, and coral reefs. Multispectral and hyperspectral imagers are available for mapping coastal land cover, concentrations of organic/inorganic suspended particles, and dissolved substances in coastal waters. Thermal infrared scanners can map sea surface temperatures accurately and chart coastal currents, while microwave radiometers can measure ocean salinity, soil moisture, and other hydrologic parameters. Radar imagers, scatterometers, and altimeters provide information on ocean waves, ocean winds, sea surface height, and coastal currents, which strongly influence coastal ecosystems. Using airborne light detecting and ranging systems, one can produce bathymetric maps, even in moderately turbid coastal waters. Since coastal ecosystems have high spatial complexity and temporal variability, they frequently have to be observed from both satellite and aircraft in order to obtain the required spatial, spectral, and temporal resolutions. A reliable field data collection approach using ships, buoys, and field instruments with a valid sampling scheme is required to calibrate and validate the remotely sensed information. The objective of this paper is to present an overview of practical remote sensing techniques that can be used in studies of coastal ecosystems

Remote Sensing and Global Environment Change

Remote Sensing plays a key role in monitoring the various manifestations of global climate change. It is used routinely in the assessment and mapping of biodiversity over large areas, in the monitoring of changes to the physical environment, in assessing threats to various components of natural systems, and in the identification of priority areas for conservation. This book presents the fundamentals of remote sensing technology, but rather than containing lengthy explanations of sensor specifications and operation, it concentrates instead on the application of the technology to key environmental systems. Each system forms the basis of a separate chapter, and each is illustrated by real world case studies and examples.https://nsuworks.nova.edu/occ_facbooks/1024/thumbnail.jp

Using Remote Sensing of Land Cover Change in Coastal Watersheds to Predict Downstream Water Quality

Huang, J. and Klemas, V., 2012. Using remote sensing of land cover change in coastal watersheds to predict downstream water quality. Journal of Coastal Research, 28(4), 930-944. West Palm Beach (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. Land cover and land use data are important for watershed assessment and runoff modeling. Satellite and airborne remote sensors can map land cover/use effectively. Whenever a strong linkage exists between land cover/use and runoff water quality, remotely sensed land cover trends can help predict long-term changes in water and habitat quality of downstream estuaries and bays. This paper reviews practical remote sensing techniques for land cover change monitoring and presents a case study that relates land cover/use, landscape patterns, and temporal scales to the water quality of runoff from a coastal watershed in SE China. The results of the case study show that the percentage of built-up land was a good predictor for downstream water quality and that the linkage among NH4+-N, CODMn, and landscape variables during wet precipitation years was stronger than during dry precipitation years.NOAA; NASA at University of Delaware; Natural National Science Foundation of China [40810069004, 40901100]; Natural Science Foundation of Fujian province, China [2009J01222