POSTER SESSION 1
15:30–17:30, Monday, September 14
Poster Session | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Schedule at a Glance
ABSTRACT 1197 | POSTER 221
EVALUATION OF WATER MASSES CHARACTERIZATION WITH THE INCLUSION OF OPTICAL DATA
The productive waters of the Northeast U.S. continental shelf are highly dynamic and variable in space and time. The shelf waters are heavily influenced by large boundary currents, such as the Gulf Stream and Labrador Current, that drive the water mass characteristics in the region. Variations in water masses can alter plankton community composition, affect primary productivity, and shift essential fish habitat. Accurate characterization and classification of specific water masses are required to quantify and analyze long-term shifts and abrupt changes in dominant water masses. We developed an operational water mass product for the Northwest Atlantic using a two-step unsupervised clustering technique, combining self-organizing maps with hierarchical agglomerative clustering. This study aims to analyze the differences and potential improvements of the water mass characterization with the addition of optical data to an existing model that is informed using hydrographic and chlorophyll data. Two models are trained: one incorporating chlorophyll derived from PACE OCI and the other including a hyperspectral optical water type product derived from PACE remote sensing reflectance (Rrs) imagery. Differences in the characterization of water masses with the inclusion of optical water types are examined for specific case studies during large phytoplankton blooms and during the northern cold-fresh pulse in 2024. This water mass classification model will be used to develop indicators to improve our understanding of oceanographic drivers of the lower trophic level dynamics and fisheries interactions.
Haley Synan*, NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center / University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography, [email protected]
Kimberly Hyde, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, [email protected]
Colleen Mouw, University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography, [email protected]
Rowan Cirivello, University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography, [email protected]
Audrey Ciochetto, University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography, [email protected]
Poster Session | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Schedule at a Glance
