Roy A. Armstrong

Remote sensing of submerged vegetation canopies for biomass estimation

Abstract The visible bands of the Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) sensor were used in an empirical assessment of seagrass biomass on shallow banks near Lee Stocking Island in the Bahamas. The TM bands were transformed to minimize the depth-dependent variance in the bottom reflectance signal. Regression analyses were performed between the transformed bands and field measurements of seagrass standing crop (above-ground biomass). Regression equations using spectral data accounted for up to 80 per cent of the variability in seagrass biomass. The unexplained variance was ascribed to variations in bottom sediment colour.

Remote sensing characterization of benthic habitats and submerged vegetation biomass in Los Roques Archipelago National Park, Venezuela

Remote sensing is a useful tool for characterizing submerged aquatic vegetation and other benthic habitats in shallow water areas with clear water transparency. In the present study, the visible bands of the Thematic Mapper (TM) sensor aboard Landsat 7 satellite were used in a supervised classification of benthic habitats and for the assessment of submerged vegetation biomass in Los Roques Archipelago National Park, Venezuela. Initially, the TM visible bands were log‐transformed and linearly combined to reduce the depth‐dependent variance in the bottom reflectance signal. The supervised classification had an overall accuracy of 74%. Eight bottom types could be spectrally separated: sand, dispersed communities over sand (shallow and deep), dense seagrass, dispersed seagrass meadows over sand, reef communities, mixed vegetation over muddy bottom, and lagoons. Regression analyses were performed between the depth‐invariant band combinations and field samples of vegetation biomass. The regression using the TM band 2 and 3 combination accounted for 64% of the variability of submerged vegetation biomass. According to these estimates, seagrass meadows with biomass between 64–96 g m−2 and 96–128 g m−2 predominate in the Los Roques Archipelago National Park.

Ozone and UV Radiation over Southern South America: Climatology and Anomalies

Abstract Ozone and UV radiation were analyzed at eight stations from tropical to sub-Antarctic regions in South America. Ground UV irradiances were measured by multichannel radiometers as part of the Inter American Institute for Global Change Radiation network. The irradiance channels used for this study were centered at 305 nm (for UV-B measurements) and 340 nm (for UV-A measurements). Results were presented as daily maximum irradiances, as monthly averaged, daily integrated irradiances and as the ratio of 305 nm to 340 nm. These findings are the first to be based on a long time series of semispectral data from the southern region of South America. As expected, the UV-B channel and total column ozone varied with latitude. The pattern of the UV-A channel was more complex because of local atmospheric conditions. Total column ozone levels of <220 Dobson Units were observed at all sites. Analysis of autocorrelations showed a larger persistence of total column ozone level than irradiance. A decreasing cross-correlation coefficient between 305 and 340 nm and an increasing cross-correlation coefficient between 305 nm and ozone were observed at higher latitudes, indicating that factors such as cloud cover tend to dominate at northern sites and that ozone levels tend to dominate at southern sites. These results highlight the value of long-term monitoring of radiation with multichannel radiometers to determine climatological data and evaluate the combination of factors affecting ground UV radiation.

Measuring Trans‐Atlantic aerosol transport from Africa

An estimated three billion metric tons of mineral aerosols are injected into the troposphere annually from the Saharan desert [Prospero et al., 1996]. Additionally, smoke from biomass burning sites in the savanna grasslands in sub-Saharan Africa contribute significant quantities of smaller-sized aerosols [e.g., Hobbs, 2000]. These windswept aerosols from the African continent are responsible for a variety of climate, health, and environmental impacts on both global and regional scales that span the Western Hemisphere. Unfortunately in situ measurements of aerosol evolution and transport across the Atlantic are difficult to obtain, and satellite remote sensing of aerosols can be challenging.

Cyclonic eddy entrains Orinoco River Plume in eastern Caribbean

“Mesoscale” eddies are large whirlpools in the ocean with diameters of hundreds of kilometers. Their influence can extend to depths of 1000 m or greater. Oceanographers are only now beginning to document the prevalence, extent, and influence of such features in the world ocean. The availability of third-generation ocean color imagery from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer-MODIS sensors aboard NASAs AQUA and TERRA platforms, and support for direct observation at sea, have now allowed characterization of such an eddy interacting with the Orinoco River plume (ORP) while traversing the eastern Caribbean basin.

Physiological Responses of Acropora cervicornis to Increased Solar Irradiance

The effects of increased UV radiation (UV‐B [280–320 nm] + UV‐A [320–400 nm]; hereafter UVR) on the growth, production of photosynthetic pigments and photoprotective mycosporine‐like amino acids (MAAs) were studied in the threatened Caribbean coral Acropora cervicornis transplanted from 20 to 1 m depth in La Parguera, Puerto Rico. The UVR exposure by the transplanted colonies was significantly higher than that at 20 m, while photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) only increased by 9%. Photosynthetic pigments, quantified with HPLC, as well as linear extension rates and skeletal densities, were significantly reduced 1 month after transplantation to 1 m depth, while MAAs increased significantly despite immediate paling experienced by transplanted colonies. While these colonies showed a significant reduction in photosynthetic pigments, there were no significant reductions in zooxanthellae densities suggesting photoacclimation of the coral’s symbionts to the new radiation conditions. The results suggest that while corals might be able to survive sudden increases in UVR and PAR, their skeletal structure can be greatly debilitated due to a reduction in the photosynthetic capacity of their symbionts and a possible relocation of resources.

Effect of Ultraviolet-B Radiation on Salt Marsh Vegetation: Trends of the Genus Salicornia along the Americas

Abstract The effects of natural UV-B radiation on growth, photosynthetic and photoprotective pigment composition of different Salicornia species were analyzed in salt marshes at three different sites along the Americas (Puerto Rico, southern Brazil and Patagonia, Argentina). Plants were exposed to different levels of UV-B radiation for 1–2 years in situ as well as in outdoor garden UV-B exclusion experiments. Different UV-B levels were obtained by covering plants with UV-B opaque (blocked 93–100% of ambient UV-B) and UV-B attenuating (near-ambient) filters (reduced 20–25% of UV-B). Unfiltered plants were exposed to natural irradiance. UV-B filters had significant effects on temperature and photosynthetic pigments (due to changes in PAR; 400–700 nm). The growth of Salicornia species was inhibited after 35 to 88 days of exposure to mean UV-B radiation dosages between 3.6 and 4.1 kJ m−2 day−1. The highest number of branches on the main shoot (S. bigelovii and S. gaudichaudiana) and longest total length of the branches (S. gaudichaudiana) were observed in the UV-B opaque treatment. Salicornia species responded to increasing levels of UV-B radiation by increasing the amount of UV-B absorbing pigments up to 330%. Chromatographic analyses of seedlings and adult S. bigelovii plants found seven different UV-B absorbing flavonoids that are likely to serve as UV-B filtering pigments. No evidence of differential sensitivity or resilience to UV-B radiation was found between Salicornia species from low-mid latitudes and a previously published study of a high-latitude population.

SeaWiFS helps assess hurricane impact on phytoplankton in Caribbean Sea

Hurricanes can change the biogeochemistry and productivity of coastal regions due to their large impact on river discharge, land runoff, water circulation, and morphological conditions. Such changes are very dramatic, but they can only last from days to a few weeks. The brief span of these events makes a rapid and low-cost assessment of their regional impact very difficult. Remote sensing of ocean color is a promising tool for assessing the impact of hurricane disturbances in coastal areas at relatively low cost.

Ultraviolet-induced responses in two species of climax tropical marine macrophytes

In tropical regions nominal reductions in stratospheric ozone could be detrimental to marine organisms that live near their upper tolerance levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation and temperature. Well-known plant responses to UV include inhibition of photosynthesis, reductions in chlorophyll content, morphological changes and production of UV absorbing compounds such as flavonoids. An assessment of the effects and responses of two tropical marine macrophytes to full solar radiation and solar radiation depleted of UV were conducted in southwestern Puerto Rico. Changes in concentration of photosynthetic and photoprotective pigments, and in leaf optical properties of the red mangrove Rhizophora mangle and the seagrass Thalassia testudinum, were evaluated in field exclusion experiments. Rhizophora mangle exposed to full solar radiation showed lower leaf reflectance and a shift of 5 nm in the inflection point of the red edge. Thalassia testudinum samples excluded from UV had significant increases in total chlorophyll and carotenoid concentrations. These marine macrophytes showed increments in their concentration of UV-B absorbing compounds with exposure to UV radiation. Results indicate that even minor increases in UV radiation at low latitudes could have significant effects on the pigment composition of these climax species.

Hyperspectral Sensing of Disease Stress in the Caribbean Reef-Building Coral, Orbicella faveolata - Perspectives for the Field of Coral Disease Monitoring

The effectiveness of management plans developed for responding to coral disease outbreaks is limited due to the lack of rapid methods of disease diagnosis. In order to fulfill current management guidelines for responding to coral disease outbreaks, alternative methods that significantly reduce response time must be developed. Hyperspectral sensing has been used by various groups to characterize the spectral signatures unique to asymptomatic and bleached corals. The 2010 combined bleaching and Caribbean yellow band disease outbreak in Puerto Rico provided a unique opportunity to investigate the spectral signatures associated with bleached and Caribbean yellow band-diseased colonies of Orbicella faveolata for the first time. Using derivative and cluster analyses of hyperspectral reflectance data, the present study demonstrates the proof of concept that spectral signatures can be used to differentiate between coral disease states. This method enhanced predominant visual methods of diagnosis by distinguishing between different asymptomatic conditions that are identical in field observations and photographic records. The ability to identify disease-affected tissue before lesions become visible could greatly reduce response times to coral disease outbreaks in monitoring efforts. Finally, spectral signatures associated with the poorly understood Caribbean yellow band disease are presented to guide future research on the role of pigments in the etiology.