In situ Validation of the Source of Thin Layers Detected by NOAA Airborne Fish Lidar
Abstract
Our long term goal is to understand how physical-biological, biological-biological and chemical-biological interactions control the formation, maintenance and dissipation of thin layers of plankton and how the resulting thin layers impact in situ and remote sensing technologies of critical interest to the Navy. We are also interested in improving our ability not only to detect, characterize and map the temporal and spatial extent of thin layers, but also to improve our ability to predict their occurrence in a variety of ocean environments. Our short-term objective is to evaluate the relative importance of large non-spheroid phytoplankton and zooplankton in generating the thin optical backscattering layers detected by the NOAA airborne fish lidar in a variety of coastal and oceanic environments. We are particularly interested in determining the degree to which the cross polarization detector system (and other characteristics) of the airborne fish lidar make it sensitive to thin layers of large, non-spheroid phytoplankton and/or zooplankton, or other types of layered non-spheroid particulate material.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 30, 2010
- Accession Number
- ADA541726
Entities
People
- James Sullivan
- Jan Rines
- Percy L. Donaghay
Organizations
- University of Rhode Island