Environmental Remote Sensing inEnvironmental Remote Sensing in

The Great Lakes and OceansThe Great Lakes and Oceans

ByBy

Arthur S. BrooksArthur S. Brooks

Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences andProfessor Emeritus of Biological Sciences and

Center for Great Lakes StudiesCenter for Great Lakes Studies

University of Wisconsin-MilwaukeeUniversity of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

April 27, 2010April 27, 2010

EARTH: THE WATER PLANET

EARTH: THE WATER PLANET

WHERE IS ALL THE WATER TODAY ??

•THE OCEANS 1,348 M kmTHE OCEANS 1,348 M km33

WHERE IS ALL THE WATER TODAY ??

• THE OCEANS 1,348 M km3• ICE CAPS & GLACIERS 29 M kmICE CAPS & GLACIERS 29 M km33

WHERE IS ALL THE WATER TODAY ??

• THE OCEANS 1,348 M km3

• ICE CAPS & GLACIERS 29 M km3

• GROUNDWATER 8.0 M kmGROUNDWATER 8.0 M km33

WHERE IS ALL THE WATER TODAY ??

• THE OCEANS 1,348 M km3

• ICE CAPS & GLACIERS 29 M km3

• GROUNDWATER 8.0 M km3• THE ATMOSPHERE 0.5 M km3

WHERE IS ALL THE WATER TODAY ??

• THE OCEANS 1,348 M km3

• ICE CAPS & GLACIERS 29 M km3

• GROUNDWATER 8.0 M km3• THE ATMOSPHERE 0.5 M km3• SURFACE FRESHWATER 0.2 M kmSURFACE FRESHWATER 0.2 M km33

COMPRESS ALL THE WATER in the World

INTO A ONE LITER BOTTLE

ALL IN ONE LITER (1000 ml)

• 974.7 ml (97.5%) SALTWATER

• 25.3 ml (2.5%) FRESH WATER

Oceans are fun, but lakes taste a lot better!Oceans are fun, but lakes taste a lot better!

ALL FRESHWATER (25.3 ml)

17.6 ml ICE CAPS AND GLACIERS 7.6 ml GROUNDWATER 0.1 ml SURFACE WATER (2 drops)

SURFACE FRESHWATER0.1 ml (2 DROPS)

0.02 ml (20%) LAKE BAIKAL (RUSSIA) 0.02 ml (20%) OUR GREAT LAKES 0.06 ml (60%) ALL OTHER RIVERS

AND LAKES

The Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) is a sensor specifically developed to study ocean color properties. These properties can be related to organic content, such as

plankton, as well as sediment. CZCS launched in October 1978, as part of Nimbus-7's instrument complement and continued to operate until late 1986. It sensed colors in the visible region in four bands, each 0.02 µm in bandwidth, centered at 0.44 (1), 0.52 (2),

0.57 (3), and 0.67 (4) µm. A fifth band between 0.7 and 0.8 µm monitored surface vegetation and band six, at 10.5-12.5 µm sensed sea surface temperatures. Here is the

first CZCS before fitting onto the Nimbus spacecraft:

CZCS distribution of chlorophyll on a global scale averaged between 1978 and 1986

Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)

-integrated on the Terra (EOS AM-1) and Aqua (EOS PM-1) spacecraft

MODIS, for Moderate (resolution) Imaging Spectrometer, covers usually large areas, such as the Black Sea shown here:

A recent image from Terra's MODIS, using bands at 11 and 12 µm, shows how sharp the temperature contrast can be between the main Gulf stream (red)

and surrounding waters:

Another MODIS image of the warm Gulf Stream emphasizes its tendency to meander as it moves northward:

In the color coding, blues correspond to the lowest levels of phytoplankton and reds to the highest. Note the eddies or rings. Phytoplankton tends to concentrate along the edges of warm core rings (which rotate clockwise) but concentrate centrally in cold core rings (counterclockwise motion).

The MODIS instrument on Aqua picked out a large phytoplankton bloom off the northern coast of Norway on July 19, 2003. Most of the blue-green color in the (near true color) image below was found to be due to plankton whose shells) are composed of chalky

Calcium carbonate (CaCO3.)

SeaWiFS (Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor), launched on August 1, 1997. The sensor system monitors ocean color variations, especially those caused by concentrations of plankton and other sea life. Thus, the prime objectives are: 1) to quantify ocean plankton production; 2) to determine observable couplings of physical/biological processes; and 3) to characterize estuarine and coastal ecosystems. The SeaWiFS sensor consists of eight channels at: 412, 443, 490, 510, 555, 670, 765, and 865 nm, each with bandwidths of 20 or 40 nm. From an orbital altitude of 705 km, spatial resolution is about 1.1 km.

On SeaWiFS, several bands cover the blue, green, and red parts of the visible spectrum, and into the near infrared, yielding data that can be used to display variations in ocean color or, for particular bands, indications of the distribution and intensity of chlorophyll that resides mainly in surficial plankton. This SeaWiFS image maps the generalized ocean colors as well as chlorphyll concentrations (in red, yellow, and orange colors) on a near global scale during September, 1997.

On SeaWiFS, several bands cover the blue, green, and red parts of the visible spectrum, and into the near infrared, yielding data that can be used to display variations in ocean color or, for particular bands, indications of the distribution and intensity of chlorophyll that resides mainly in surficial plankton. This SeaWiFS image maps the generalized ocean colors as well as chlorphyll concentrations (in red, yellow, and orange colors) on a near global scale.

SeaWiFS produces regional scale images in which eddies and circulation patterns are evident. In this view of western North America, marine eddies have formed off the British Columbia coast around Queen Charlotte; to the west is another eddy-like pattern made by clouds.

Red Tide occurred north of the Florida Keys in 2002, as seen in this SeaWiFs image that renders the red algae in almost natural color;

Key West

In Situ Validation Data

Drifting Buoys

Right - Explorer cruise tracks that provide bias reference using M-AERI observationsLower Left - Drifting buoys, used to compute SST equation retrieval coefficientsLower Right - Global M-AERI cruise tracks, final validation suite

•TERRA and AQUA SST and SST4 products show similar behavior with respect to in situ retrievals to date

Balch/Campbell - Gulf of Maine Ferry Comparisons

J. Campbell et al.

Dec 10 2000 SeaWiFS - MODIS Chlorophyll Comparisons

Sea

WiF

S C

hlor

ophy

ll a

MODIS Chlorophyll a

SCIENCE QUESTIONS (Ocean NPP)

This Product Derives Ocean Net Primary Production and Annual Export Production from Chlorophyll, Light (PAR), SST, and Mixed Layer Depth

Carbon fixed/m2/day - Needed to understand: Magnitude and Variability of ONPP, and uncertainties. Ecosystem dynamics (coupling with physical forcings) Food chain effects (fisheries resources) Carbon cycle (carbon export, pCO2 and hence air sea C flux)

RELEVANT SCIENCE QUESTIONS for ONPPVariability - How are global ecosystems changing? Response - How do ecosystems respond to and affect global environmental change and the carbon cycle?

.01 0.1 1.0 10. 20.Chlorophyll a (mg m-3)

Chlor_MODIS (Clark)Chlorophyll-a (empirical)

Chlor_a_2Chlorophyll-a (SeaWiFS analog)OC3M OReilly et al

Chlor_a_3 (Carder)Chlorophyll-a (semi-analytic)Input for ONPP, Fluorescence Efficiency

December, 2000

Weekly PAR December 10, 2000

Derived from GSFC Data Assimilation Office GEOS 3.2.5 3 hr retrievals.

MODIS SST December 10, 2000

MODIS Daytime 11-12 m SST D1 Also used for Chlorophyll nut depletion Temp.

Mixed Layer Depth Dec. 10, 2000

Mixed Layer Depth is averaged from daily values retreived by Fleet Numerical Monterey Oceanographic Center’s (FNMOC) OTIS model, obtained through NOAA-Navy net by GES DAAC.

P1Behrenfeld-Falkowski

P2HowardYoderRyan

Dec 10-18,2000 3.3.1

Name the Great Lakes ?

H O M E S

Name the Great Lakes ?

Huron

Name the Great Lakes ?

Ontario

Huron

Name the Great Lakes ?

Michigan

Huron

Ontario

Name the Great Lakes ?

Michigan

Huron

Ontario

Erie

Name the Great Lakes ?

Michigan

Huron

Ontario

Erie

Superior

THE GREAT LAKES HYDROLOGIC CYCLE

Underwater Processes

Invisible From Space

Properties of Water –

Temperature vs. Density

Lightest

Heaviest

Ice Floats

Maximum Density at

4 C

Offshore Migration

Of the

Thermal Front in

Lake Ontario

Spring 1965

Northward and Outward Advancement of

The Thermal Front

May 6 --- June 2 1992

UWM RV NEESKAY

Nutrients: Silicon Nitrogen Phosphorus

Diatoms (algae) Spring Bloom

Sunlight

Stylized Annual Primary Production and Nutrient Cycles

Thermal stratification forms:

Late May 1973 and Late June 1974

40% Greater Chlorophyll Biomass in 1974 with longer mixing period

Interannual Differences in Primary Production 1973-1974

Primary Production for Lake Michigan

Summer

Lake Mixing

Nutrients P,N, Si

Light Increasing

Lake

Mixing

Light

Decreasing

Spring Algae Bloom

-Lake Stratified-

Fall

Brooks and Zastrow 2000

135 Days225 Days

102-125 [113]

104-129 [116]

http://coastwatch.glerl.noaa.gov/glsea/movies/p365days.flc