Field Spectroscopy of Benthic Habitats in the Grand Bay NERR

Estuaries are commonly viewed as the transition zone where fresh water streams and rivers flow into open oceans and seas. Their complex and dynamic nature stems from the hydrological and hydrodynamic effect of fresh and saltwater mixing. This unique setting provides for diverse heterogeneity amongst a variety of habitats. These habitats are often submerged and only defined by their benthic substrates. The ability to distinguish and map these benthic substrates is critical to the overall understanding of an estuarine ecosystem. In addition, discernment of estuarine benthic substrates is essential for the enhancement of resource management and assessing their ecosystems relative importance. Distinguishing these benthic substrates has recently progressed into the form of less invasive techniques, such as the introduction of portable, hyperspectral spectrometers. With each estuarine benthic substrate having distinguishable spectral reflectance characteristics, the hyperspectral spectrometer can be a valuable tool towards rapid identification of benthic habitats. This project focuses on creating a spectral library for the different benthic habitats at 14 designated locations of interests within the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve near Pascagoula, Mississippi. At each of the 14 designated locations, data was obtained using the Ocean Optics USB2000 Fiber Optic Spectrometer resulting in 149 individual scans that were simultaneously uploaded to The Center for Advanced Land Management Technologies Data Acquisition Program (CDAP). The Ocean Optics spectrometer was able to record readings from roughly 350-1020 nm. Scans were taken both above and below the water's surface to estimate the effect that water has upon the spectra. The spectra were then processed and transferred, together with all relevant metadata into a readable format where the instrument responses can eventually be used to discriminate the spectral readings using a variety of different indices.

PRESENTATION TYPE: Oral TECHNICAL AREA: Remote Sensing and Satellites AFFILIATION: STUDENT (Graduate)

CENTER AFFILIATION: ECSC

ARE YOU APPLYING FOR A STUDENT TRAVEL AWARD: Yes