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Articles

No. 23 (2020)

Satellite Water Column Data for Hydrography

Submitted
October 19, 2022
Published
2020-05-30

Abstract

Optical-band satellite images selected for satellite-derived bathymetry (SDB) analysis require clear water with low turbidity. As a result, image selection processes exclude images with excess turbidity regardless of cause. Images with water-column turbidity contain valuable information. Under certain conditions, vortex patterns in navigable waters are present in satellite imagery. Although vortex-induced turbidity excludes these images from SDB processing, the presence and shape of these vortices contain information relevant to hydrography. In this observational study, we use two case studies to describe vortex patterns and environmental conditions leading to their formation and then explore novel hydrographic survey applications of these phenomena.