Seminar on Ocean Observation

Ocean data derived from satellite observations.\Image courtesy of NASA.

The Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) has moved its regular research seminar online.  The next talk, “Building toward a new Lidar Era in satellite oceanography,” takes place on Thursday, Oct. 22, at 3:30 p.m.  It is free and open to all.

The speak is Mike Behrenfeld, a professor in the Department of Botany and Plant Pathology at Oregon State University.   His description of his subject:

“Since the late 1970’s, satellite observations have profoundly influenced our understanding of global ocean ecosystems.  The retrieval of plankton properties from space has almost entirely been based on a technique known as passive ocean color measurements.  This technique quantifies variations in the water leaving reflectance spectrum of sunlight and it relates these variations to properties such as phytoplankton chlorophyll concentration and carbon biomass.  While providing a revolution in global oceanography, the passive ocean color approach has significant and long-recognized limitations.  Key among these are its very limited depth penetration, failed retrievals at low sun angles, susceptibility to contamination from light scattering by clouds, and inability to measure plankton properties at night.  The Light Detection and Ranging (LiDaR) technique provides a complementary approach for ocean remote sensing that addresses these issues, but its application has largely been restricted to ship and airborne platforms.  In this presentation, I will discuss recent developments regarding the feasibility of plankton retrievals with a satellite LiDaR and some of the new ecological insights afforded by this approach.  This research is aimed at building a solid scientific foundation for a future ocean-optimized satellite LiDaR mission.”    

For the live broadcast of the VIRTUAL Thursday Seminar, visit: https://oregonstate.zoom.us/j/94555731151?pwd=RnJ6eVg0ODdzRUpVc0pQbUlIdUV3dz09#success

Password: 972587 or call +1-971-247-1195 US Meeting ID: 945 5573 1151