Five Year Mean Euphotic Depth in the Northern Gulf of Mexico for 2005 through 2009

These images were created by combining the mean euphotic depth estimates to produce seasonal representations for winter, spring, summer and fall. Winter includes the months of January, February and March; spring includes the months of April, May and June; summer includes the months of July, August and September; fall includes the months of October, November and December. Euphotic depth estimates were originally obtained from the Naval Research Laboratory at the Stennis Space Center (NRL/SSC). NRL/SSC processed MODIS-Aqua satellite imagery covering the Gulf of Mexico, for a 5-year time period from January 2005 through December 2009. The Gulf of Mexico was divided into three regions, western, central and eastern. For purposes of this image, the three regions were joined in ArcMAP 10. To calculate euphotic depth (Zeu) from the satellite imagery, NRL first estimated the absorption and backscattering coefficients of the water from the satellite remote sensing reflectance (Rrs) values (Lee et al. 2002), and then used those coefficients to estimate Zeu and make image products. The diffuse attenuation coefficient was calculated two ways: at 490 nm using the NASA empirical KD2 algorithm and at 488 nm using the semi-analytical algorithm of Lee et al. (2005a). The Lee et al. (2005a) algorithm is accurate to about 15%, compared to in situ measurements (Lee et al. 2005b).

This project was undertaken to assess the utility of satellite-derived products and modeled data for resource managers to characterize pelagic habitats in the absence of dense, time series in situ data. There were several steps involved in this process, including: identifying the most useful physicochemical parameters for characterizing the water column; assessing the fit of satellite-derived and modeled data as a proxy for in situ data; evaluating alternative, automated classification methodologies; querying resource managers for product improvement opportunities; and developing a practical example of a management application. Euphotic depth was one of the satellite-derived products assessed as a proxy for in situ data.

10895

The NOAA Office for Coastal Management - Gulf Region received this data from another federal agency. Questions regarding the original data collection and/or processing should be directed to that agency (see lineage source citation).

Any conclusions drawn from the analysis of this information are not the responsibility of the NOAA Office for Coastal Management or its partners.NOAA makes no warranty regarding these data, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA, NESDIS, NODC and NCDDC cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data, nor as a result of the failure of these data to function on a particular system.

None

None

Unique values were generated for each image in ArcMAP 10. The unique values were then manually reclassified into appropriate Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard categories.

Values were assigned to categories in accordance with the Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard.

not applicable