9806982 Bagheri This research will develop remote sensing methodology for use as a tool in aiding the assessment and the management of water quality in nearshore waters using imaging spectrometer AVIRIS data and in situ field measurements, augmented by SeaWIFS data for synoptic purposes. The test site is the Hudson/Raritan Estuary which is a complex ecosystem, important to the New York metropolitan area and considered the most intensively developed/industrialized estuary on the US east coast. The proposed research will acquire multitemporal/multisensor data from SeaWIFS, AVIRIS, field spectroradiometer and associated discrete water sampling. Based on these measurements optical water quality models will be constructed linking the water constituent concentrations to the inherent optical properties (IOP), using the specific inherent optical properties (SIOP), to the subsurface (ir)radiance reflectance. This will minimize the need for simultaneous remote sensing data acquisition and large scale in situ sampling. All that will be necessary during the AVIR flight is the accurate measurement of up and downwelling (ir)radiance, and limited in situ measurements for verification. Three approaches will be used to develop remote sensing algorithms for this project (in increasing order of importance): (1) a spectral library approach; (2) a derivative analysis approach; and (3) an analytical algorithm approach based on bio-optical modeling and Radiative Transfer Theory (RTT). ***
