1OPTICAL CLASSIFICATION OF WATER TYPES BASED ON REMOTELY-SENSED OCEAN COLOUR

• Main Authors: Linda V. Martin Traykovski, Heidi M. Sosik
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Northwest Atlantic
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.579.8549; http://www.whoi.edu/science/B/sosiklab/1150LT.pdf

We are developing optical water type classification approaches based on remotely-sensed water leaving radiance, with application to the study of spatial and temporal dynamics of ecologically and biogeochemically important properties of the upper ocean. In contrast to previous studies that have focused primarily on pigment distributions, our goal is to extract as much information as possible from the full set of spectral bands. Our initial work includes a regional study of optical properties in the northwest Atlantic based on CZCS and SeaWiFS data, as well as the detection and identification of phytoplankton blooms around the globe. With this preliminary study, we have established a basis for the application of feature-based approaches for the optical classification of water types. Future work will involve integrating in situ data into classifier development, and exploring the utility of both model-based and feature-based classification approaches. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Optical water type classification approaches based on remotely-sensed water