Page 52: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2016)

MARINE SCIENCE

Images obtained from FlowCam of plankton during a cruise in the Gulf of Maine.

Harry Nelson of Fluid Imaging Technol- ogies and Dr. Jeffrey Runge from the

Gulf of Maine Institute, using a Flow-

Cam system during the GOMCES 2016

Cruise. Credit: Dr. Rosana Di Mauro

Credit: Fluid Imaging Technologies.

the ocean color images. This also made high-resolution ocean color images, you toplankton functional types using ocean the next generation of hyperspectral it easier to infer how different communi- didn’t have enough datasets of phyto- color data. And this is one of NASA’s ocean color sensors for satellites. Hyper- ties in? uenced the color of the sea. And plankton to understand how they in? u- biggest goals in the next strategic plan.” spectral imaging can capture the spec- so, regarding ocean color research, it is enced ocean color properties in the water Scientists strive to increase observa- trum for each pixel in an image, with really a big step forward. The problem column. The FlowCam opens that av- tions across both time and space beyond the purpose of ? nding objects, identi- yp g p, in the past has been that, enue for looking what is currently possible. In order to fying materials or detecting processes. link environmental drivers to plank- at phy- although you although you at phy- link environmental drivers to plank- The next NASA satellite mission, PACE ton species composition and ecosystem have have ton species composition and ecosystem (Plankton, Aerosols, Cloud, ocean Eco- function, efforts are being made to un- function, efforts are being made to un- systems), aims to deliver the most com- derstand spectral variations in the derstand spectral variations in the prehensive look at global ocean color light ? eld to develop algo- light ? eld to develop algo- measurements in NASA’s history. Un- rithms which identify phy- rithms which identify phy- like its predecessors, this satellite will toplankton groups using toplankton groups using be able to make hyperspectral measure- ocean color. ocean color. ments beyond which the human eye

As part of this As part of this could naturally see.

endeavor, endeavor, Neeley explains, “PACE is a mission

NASA is NASA is that will include the ? rst satellite ocean looking to looking to color instrument to combine high-reso- launch launch lution global coverage with an extended spectral range to the ultraviolet wave- lengths. The ocean color instrument is also being designed at hyperspectral res- olution, making the PACE mission truly unique. The advantage of this ? ner spec- tral resolution will be large amounts of information in the visible spectrum from which we’ll be able to detect different phytoplankton groups that were not pre- viously distinguishable in ocean color imagery. Many applications are expected from PACE, such as the improvement of

HAB detection and forecasting as well

On September 20, 1997 SeaWiFS col- lected its ? rst complete day’s worth of ocean color data. Ten years later it continues to collect the data that have greatly enhanced our knowledge of the ecology of Earth’s oceans. (Credit: NASA Ocean

Biology Processing Group (OBPG))

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