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Below are most recent sea surface temperature, and reflectance images of Florida Bay as determined from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) onboard NOAA polar-orbiting environmental satellites. Images include both land mask (brown) and cloud masks (gray), with hash marks every 1/2 degree. Imagery data sets are provisional and the values are subject to change. The temperature resolution is 1/6 degree Celsius. The reflectances correspond to the brightness (or turbidity) of the water; however they have not been corrected for bottom reflectance. These images were processed at the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center from level 1b data obtained from the University of South Florida Department of Marine Science and the Florida Marine Research Institute. Current Sea Surface Temperature (SST) Imagefull-resolution SST image [100KB-500KB TIFF] | SST Imagery Archive
Reflectance Datafull-resolution Reflectance image [100KB-500KB TIFF] | Reflectance Imagery Archive
Reflectance can be related to attenuation, Secchi disk depth, or total suspended solids. In Florida Bay, nominally, 10% reflectance corresponds to sediment concentration of 30 mg/l, light attenuation of 2.0 m-1, or a Secchi disk depth of 0.5 m. These relationships can be approximated as linear (5% would correspond to 15 mg/l, attenuation of 1.0 m-1, and Secchi depth of 1 m). In areas of clear water over highly reflective bottom, estimates of light attenuation, etc. are not appropriate. Clear water is most common from June through September; during these times the signal represents both the water column and the bottom albedo. We are investigating separation of the bottom signal from the water column reflectance. |
U. S. Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey
