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Empirical ocean-color algorithms to retrieve chlorophyll-a, total suspended matter, and colored dissolved organic matter absorption coefficient in the Yellow and East China Seas

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Abstract

A bio-optical dataset collected during the 1998–2007 period in the Yellow and East China Seas (YECS) was used to provide alternative empirical ocean-color algorithms in the retrieval of chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), total suspended matter (TSM), and colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) absorption coefficients at 440 nm (ag440). Assuming that remote-sensing reflectance (Rrs) could be retrieved accurately, empirical algorithms for TChl (regionally tuned Tassan’s Chl-a algorithm) in case-1 waters (TChl2i in case-2 waters), TTSM (regionally tuned Tassan’s TSM algorithm), and Tag440 or Cag440 (regionally tuned Tassan’s or Carder’s ag440 algorithm) were able to retrieve Chl-a, TSM, and ag440 with uncertainties as high as 35, 46, and 35%, respectively. Applying the standard SeaWiFS Rrs, TChl was not viable in the eastern part of the YECS, which was associated with an inaccurate SeaWiFS Rrs retrieval because of improper atmospheric correction. TChl behaved better than other algorithms in the turbid case-2 waters, although overestimation was still observed. To retrieve more reliable Chl-a estimates with standard SeaWiFS Rrs in turbid water (a proxy for case-2 waters), we modified TChl for data with SeaWiFS normalized water-leaving radiance at 555 nm (nLw555) > 2 mW cm−2 μm−1 sr−1 (TChl2s). Finally, with standard SeaWiFS Rrs, we recommend switching algorithms from TChl2s (for case-2 waters) to MOCChl (SeaWiFS-modified NASA OC4v4 standard algorithm for case-1 waters) for retrieving Chl-a, which resulted in uncertainties as high as 49%. To retrieve TSM and ag440 using SeaWiFS Rrs, we recommend empirical algorithms for TTSM (pre-SeaWiFS-modified form) and MTag440 or MCag440 (SeaWiFS Rrs-modified forms of Tag440 or Cag440). These could retrieve with uncertainties as high as 82 and 52%, respectively.

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Abbreviations

Chl-a :

Chlorophyll-a (mg m−3)

TSM:

Total suspended matter (mg l−1)

CDOM:

Colored dissolved organic matter

ag440 :

CDOM absorption coefficient (m−1) at 440 nm

Rrs:

Remote-sensing reflectance (sr−1)

nLw:

Normalized water-leaving radiance (mW cm−2 μm−1 sr−1)

TChl-O:

Original Tassan’s (1994) Chl-a algorithm

TChl :

Regionally tuned Tassan’s (1994) Chl-a algorithm

OC4v4:

NASA Chl-a standard algorithm

OCChl :

Regionally tuned OC4v4

TChl2i:

TChl optimized only for in situ nLw555 > 2 mW cm−2 μm−1 sr−1

TChl_TChl2i:

Switching Chl-a algorithms: TChl for nLw555 ≤ 2 mW cm−2 μm−1 sr−1, TChl2i for nLw555 > 2 mW cm−2 μm−1 sr−1

TTSM-O:

Original Tassan’s (1994) TSM algorithm

TTSM :

Regionally tuned Tassan’s (1994) TSM algorithm

CSeaTSM :

TSM algorithm implemented in SeaDAS (SeaWiFS Data Analysis System)

CTSM :

Regionally tuned CSeaTSM

Tag440-O:

Original Tassan’s (1994) ag440 algorithm

Tag440 :

Regionally tuned Tassan’s (1994) ag440 algorithm

Cag440 :

Regionally tuned Carder et al.’s (2003) ag440 algorithm

MTChl :

Modified TChl based on standard SeaWiFS Rrs

MOCChl :

Modified OCChl based on standard SeaWiFS Rrs

TChl2 s:

Same as TChl2i except with standard SeaWiFS nLw555

MOCChl_TChl2s:

Switched Chl-a algorithms: MOCChl for SeaWiFS nLw555 ≤ 2 mW cm−2 μm−1 sr−1, TChl2s for SeaWiFS nLw555 > 2 mW cm−2 μm−1 sr−1

MTTSM :

Modified TTSM based on standard SeaWiFS Rrs

MTag440 :

Modified Tag440 based on standard SeaWiFS Rrs

MCag440 :

Modified Cag440 based on standard SeaWiFS Rrs

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)/Global Environment Facility (GEF) Yellow Sea Large Marine Ecosystem (YSLME) Project. We would like to thank the SeaWiFS Project (code 970.2) and the Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center/Distributed Active Archive Center (code 902) at the Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, 20771, for the production and distribution of the SeaWiFS data, respectively.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Geospatial Science and Technology (INSTeG), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

    Eko Siswanto

  2. Hydrospheric Atmospheric Research Center, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan

    Joji Ishizaka

  3. National Ocean Technology Center, Tianjin, China

    Junwu Tang

  4. Korean Ocean Research and Development Institute, Seoul, Korea

    Yu-Hwan Ahn & Sinjae Yoo

  5. National Fisheries Research and Development Institute, Busan, Korea

    Sang-Woo Kim

  6. Seikai National Fisheries Research Institute, Nagasaki, Japan

    Yoko Kiyomoto

  7. Department of Global Environment College of Environment, Keimyung University, Daegu, Korea

    Keiko Yamada

  8. Yellow Sea Large Marine Ecosystem Project, Seoul, Korea

    Connie Chiang

  9. Graduated School of Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan

    Hiroshi Kawamura

  10. Earth Observation Research Center, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Tsukuba, Japan

    Hisashi Yamaguchi

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  1. Eko Siswanto
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Correspondence to Eko Siswanto.

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Siswanto, E., Tang, J., Yamaguchi, H. et al. Empirical ocean-color algorithms to retrieve chlorophyll-a, total suspended matter, and colored dissolved organic matter absorption coefficient in the Yellow and East China Seas. J Oceanogr 67, 627–650 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10872-011-0062-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10872-011-0062-z

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