Dataset Information

New capabilities of Sentinel-2A/B satellites combined with in situ data for monitoring small harmful algal blooms in complex coastal waters.

ABSTRACT: The increased frequency of harmful algal blooms (HABs) is a major environmental concern worldwide, resulting not only in increased treatment costs for drinking water but also in impacts on tourism, commercial fishing and aquaculture and risks to human and animal health. Traditional strategies with ship-based approaches based on field sampling and laboratory analysis have been adopted to assess HABs. However, these methods are labour intensive and costly and do not provide synoptic views of the bloom conditions. Here, we show that the Sentinel-2 twin satellite mission of the Copernicus programme, in combination with in situ data, is a powerful tool that can offer valuable spatiotemporal information about a bloom of the dinoflagellate Lingulodinium polyedra that occurred on the SW Iberian Peninsula. Using the robust ACOLITE atmospheric correction processor combined with the normalized difference chlorophyll index (NDCI), the enhanced mapping of small blooms can be performed at a 10?m spatial resolution, revealing surface patches and a heterogeneous distribution. This research also demonstrates the improved capabilities of Sentinel-2 compared to those of Landsat-8 and Sentinel-3 for continuous monitoring. The Sentinel-3 and Sentinel-2 missions provide ecosystem observations that allow the environmental community and water managers to evaluate changes in water quality and bloom distribution and that facilitate field-based measurements. Therefore, the value added by the Copernicus products in terms of frequency and synoptic observations is of paramount importance for ecological and management purposes at regional and national scales.

SUBMITTER: Caballero I

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7250863 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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New capabilities of Sentinel-2A/B satellites combined with in situ data for monitoring small harmful algal blooms in complex coastal waters.

Caballero Isabel I Fernández Raúl R Escalante Oscar Moreno OM Mamán Luz L Navarro Gabriel G

Scientific reports 20200526 1

The increased frequency of harmful algal blooms (HABs) is a major environmental concern worldwide, resulting not only in increased treatment costs for drinking water but also in impacts on tourism, commercial fishing and aquaculture and risks to human and animal health. Traditional strategies with ship-based approaches based on field sampling and laboratory analysis have been adopted to assess HABs. However, these methods are labour intensive and costly and do not provide synoptic views of the b ...[more]

PMID: 32457388

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Project description:Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) are of global concern, as their presence is often associated with socio-economic and environmental issues including impacts on public health, aquaculture and fisheries. Therefore, monitoring the occurrence and succession of HABs is fundamental for managing coastal regions around the world. Yet, due to the lack of adequate in situ measurements, the detection of HABs in coastal marine ecosystems remains challenging. Sensors on-board satellite platforms have sampled the Earth synoptically for decades, offering an alternative, cost-effective approach to routinely detect and monitor phytoplankton. The Red Sea, a large marine ecosystem characterised by extensive coral reefs, high levels of biodiversity and endemism, and a growing aquaculture industry, is one such region where knowledge of HABs is limited. Here, using high-resolution satellite remote sensing observations (1km, MODIS-Aqua) and a second-order derivative approach, in conjunction with available in situ datasets, we investigate for the first time the capability of a remote sensing model to detect and monitor HABs in the Red Sea. The model is able to successfully detect and generate maps of HABs associated with different phytoplankton functional types, matching concurrent in situ data remarkably well. We also acknowledge the limitations of using a remote-sensing based approach and show that regardless of a HAB's spatial coverage, the model is only capable of detecting the presence of a HAB when the Chl-a concentrations exceed a minimum value of ~ 1 mg m-3. Despite the difficulties in detecting HABs at lower concentrations, and identifying species toxicity levels (only possible through in situ measurements), the proposed method has the potential to map the reported spatial distribution of several HAB species over the last two decades. Such information is essential for the regional economy (i.e., aquaculture, fisheries & tourism), and will support the management and sustainability of the Red Sea's coastal economic zone.

Dataset Information

New capabilities of Sentinel-2A/B satellites combined with in situ data for monitoring small harmful algal blooms in complex coastal waters.

Publications

New capabilities of Sentinel-2A/B satellites combined with in situ data for monitoring small harmful algal blooms in complex coastal waters.

Similar Datasets

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