Attenuation of visible solar radiation in the upper water column: A model based on IQPs

Abstract

For many oceanic studies, it is required to know the distribution of visible solar radiation (E FAR) in the upper water column. One way to reach this is by remote sensing. This includes two components: First, E PAR at surface is calculated based on atmosphere properties along with the position of the Sun. Second, the vertical attenuation of E PAR (K PAR) is derived from products of ocean-color remote sensing. Currently, K PAR is estimated based on chlorophyll concentration ([C]) from ocean color. This kind of approach works well for waters where all optical properties can be adequately described by values of [C], but will result in large uncertainties for coastal waters where [C] alone cannot accurately describe the optical properties. In this paper, we present an innovative model that describes K PAR as a function of water's inherent optical properties (IOP). © 2005 IEEE.