Effect of bio-optical parameter variability and uncertainties in reflectance measurements on the remote estimation of chlorophyll-a concentration in turbid productive waters: modeling results

Most algorithms for retrieving chlorophyll-a concentration (Chla) from reflectance spectra assume that bio-optical parameters such as the phytoplankton specific absorption coefficient (aPhi*) or the chlorophyll-a fluorescence quantum yield (eta) are constant. Yet there exist experimental data showing large ranges of variability for these quantities. The main objective of this study was to analyze the sensitivity of two Chla algorithms to variations in bio-optical parameters and to uncertainties in reflectance measurements. These algorithms are specifically designed for turbid productive waters and are based on red and near-infrared reflectances. By means of simulated data, it is shown that the spectral regions where the algorithms are maximally sensitive to Chla overlap those of maximal sensitivity to variations in the above bio-optical parameters. Thus, to increase the accuracy of Chla retrieval, we suggest using spectral regions where the algorithms are less sensitive to Chla, but also less sensitive to these interferences. aPhi* appeared to be one of the most important sources of error for retrieving Chla. However, when the phytoplankton backscattering coefficient (bb,Phi) dominates the total backscattering, as is likely during algal blooms, variations in the specific bb,Phi may introduce large systematic uncertainties in Chla estimation. Also, uncertainties in reflectance measurements, which are due to incomplete atmospheric correction or reflected skylight removal, seem to affect considerably the accuracy of Chla estimation. Instead, variations in other bio-optical parameters, such as eta or the specific backscattering coefficient of total suspended particles, appear to have minor importance. Suggestions regarding the optimal band locations to be used in the above algorithms are finally provided.     

Application of empirical neural networks to chlorophyll-a estimation in coastal waters using remote optosensors

This paper presents chlorophyll-a estimation in coastal waters off the Gulf of Finland using remote optosensors. Concurrent remote optosensor data and in situ measurements of water quality were obtained in the study area. Significant correlations were observed between digital values and chlorophyll-a measurements. The results as a case study show that the estimated accuracy of chlorophyll-a retrieval using neural networks is higher than the accuracy of chlorophyll-a estimation using regression analyzes in the area. The study also shows one example why remote optosensors are critical to monitor water quality in coastal areas such as the Gulf of Finland.     

Comparison of chlorophyll a concentration detected by remote sensors and other chlorophyll indices in inhomogeneous turbid waters

A new analytical approach for retrieval of the vertically weighted chlorophyll a concentration (Chl(rs)) detected by remote sensors is presented. Model calculations were carried out for the turbid waters of Lake Kinneret, Israel, and showed that Chl(rs) may be replaced by the average chlorophyll a concentration (Chl(p)) within the upper "penetration layer" 0-Z(p). The study also showed a high correlation between Chl(rs) and Chl concentration averaged in the other depth layers, namely, the 0-1 m layer, the euphotic layer (0-Z(e)), and the production layer (0-Z(pr)). Our findings are closely related to models developed for the world ocean, with the exception of periods when the dinoflagellate Peridinium gatunense blooms in the lake. We showed the effect of the pattern of vertical Chl distributions within the penetration layer on the difference between Chl(rs) and other Chl indices was conspicuous when the Chl maximum was in the uppermost 0- m layer of the water column. We assume that the presented approaches are instrumental for further development of optimal, locally adapted algorithms for remote sensing of Chl in any type of natural waters.     

Contribution of water-leaving radiances to multiangle, multispectral polarimetric observations over the open ocean: bio-optical model results for case 1 waters

Multiangle, multispectral photopolarimetry of atmosphere-ocean systems provides the fullest set of remote sensing information possible on the scattering properties of aerosols and on the color of the ocean. Recent studies have shown that inverting such data allows for the potential of separating the retrieval of aerosol properties from ocean color monitoring in the visible part of the spectrum. However, the data in these studies were limited to those principal plane observations where the polarization of water-leaving radiances could be ignored. Examining similar potentials for off-principal plane observations requires the ability to assess realistic variations in both the reflectance for and bidirectionality of polarized water-leaving radiances for such viewing geometries. We provide hydrosol models for use in underwater light scattering computations to study such variations. The model consists of two components whose refractive indices resemble those of detritus-minerallike and planktonlike particles, whose size distributions are constrained by underwater light linear polarization signatures, and whose mixing ratios change as a function of particulate backscattering efficiency. Multiple scattering computations show that these models are capable of reproducing realistic underwater light albedos for wavelengths ranging from 400 to 600 nm, and for chlorophyll a concentrations ranging from 0.03 to 3.0 mg/m(3). Numerical results for spaceborne observations of the reflectance for total and polarized water-leaving radiances are provided as a function of polar angles, and the change in these reflectances with wavelength, chlorophyll a concentration, and hydrosol model are discussed in detail for case 1 (open ocean) waters.     

Evaluation of the energy parameter J on rubber-like materials: Comparison between experimental and numerical results

The general purpose of our study is the determination of the energy parameter J when dealing with fracture of rubber-like materials. The energy parameter J is expressed in a multiplicative form in which a calibration factor is introduced in order to take into account the finite dimensions of the specimen. The parameter J, issued from fracture tests performed on S.E.N.T specimen of an E.P.D.M rubber is compared with the the J integral which is computed using a finite element procedure for the non-linear elastic materials with large deformation. The numerical results are in good agreement with the experimental data when considering the deeply cracked specimen (a/w ≥ 0.5). Below this limit, a divergence is pointed out which is attributed to a lack of accuracy of the identification procedure used to determine the experimental calibration factor. When this one is determined using the numerical J integral results, a better concordance is obtained.     

Model of variability estimation: factors influencing human prediction and estimation of variability in continuous information

ABSTRACT

Understanding the variability of trends and other continuously distributed quantities is a vital ability underlying many safety critical decisions, such as how widely to search for a downed aircraft, or whether to prepare for evacuation in the face of an uncertain hurricane or hurricane track. We first review the sparse research on this topic which indicates a general systematic tendency to underestimate such variability, akin to overconfidence in the precision of prediction. However, the magnitude of such underestimation varies across experiments and research paradigms. Based on these existing findings, and other known biases and vulnerabilities of the perception and cognition of multiple instances, we define the core elements of a computational model that can itself predict three measures of performance in variability estimation: bias (to over or underestimate variability), sensitivity (to variability differences) and precision (of variability judgements). Factors and approximate weighting in influencing these measures are then identified regarding attention, the number of instances across whose variability is estimated, the time delay affecting the memory system employed, familiarity of material, the anchoring heuristic and the method of judgement. These are then incorporated into foundations for a linear additive model.     

Processing the results of a check of measuring instruments using stable methods of parameter estimation

The increments of the errors of measuring instruments in the interval between tests are analyzed. A mathematical apparatus is developed which enables the effect of rough errors, faults and “sudden” metrological breakdowns on the accuracy of estimates of the metrological characteristics when using a Kalman filter to be reduced. __________ Translated from Izmeritel’naya Tekhnika, No. 4, pp. 16–18, April, 2008.     

Phosphorescence lifetime imaging in turbid media: the inverse problem and experimental image reconstruction

Three-dimensional phosphorescence lifetime imaging is a novel method for the mapping of oxygen concentration in biological tissues. We present reconstruction techniques for recovering phosphorescent objects in highly scattering media based on the telegraph equation and two regularization methods, i.e., the Tikhonov-Phillips regularization and the maximum entropy method. Theoretical results are experimentally validated, and the reconstructed images of phosphorescent objects rendering oxygen maps in a layer are presented.     

Theory of a fixed scatterer embedded in a turbid medium: numerical results

Based on a previous theory of diffuse photon density waves by Furutsu [J. Opt. Soc. Am. A 15, 1371 (1998)], several sets of figures are prepared to detect a fixed scatterer (object) embedded in a turbid layer, such as a tumor in tissue, with a source and a detector placed independently along the boundaries on different sides. The relative total intensity of the wave is introduced such that it is reduced to 1 in the case of no scatterer and usually less than that, owing to a shadowing by the scatterer. Sets of curves are presented to demonstrate shadow images of the scatterer observed along the layer boundaries depending on the scatterer's location.     

Effect of the scattering delay on time-dependent photon migration in turbid media

We modified the diffusion approximation of the time-dependent radiative transfer equation to account for a finite scattering delay time. Under the usual assumptions of the diffusion approximation, the effect of the scattering delay leads to a simple renormalization of the light velocity that appears in the diffusion equation. Accuracy of the model was evaluated by comparison with Monte Carlo simulations in the frequency domain for a semi-infinite geometry. A good agreement is demonstrated for both matched and mismatched boundary conditions when the distance from the source is sufficiently large. The modified diffusion model predicts that the neglect of the scattering delay when the optical properties of the turbid material are derived from normalized frequency- or time-domain measurements should result in an underestimation of the absorption coefficient and an overestimation of the transport coefficient. These observations are consistent with the published experimental data.     

Effect of suspended particulate and dissolved organic matter on remote sensing of coastal and riverine waters

We use remote sensing reflectance (RSR) together with the inherent optical properties of suspended particulates to determine the backscattering ratio b(b)/b for coastal waters. We examine the wavelength dependence of b(b)(lambda) and f(lambda)/Q(lambda) and establish the conditions when C(lambda) in RSR(lambda) approximately or = C(lambda)b(b)(lambda)/a(lambda) can be treated as a constant. We found that for case 2 waters, RSR was insensitive to the natural fluctuations in particle-size distributions. The cross-sectional area of the suspended particulate per unit volume, x(g), showed an excellent correlation with the volume scattering coefficient.     

河流水质模型参数估值方法探讨

采用最速下降法、正则化方法和正交化方法对河流水质模型参数进行了优化估算，并从计算方法的适用范围、计算机编程的复杂程度、整体工作量的大小，计算结果的代表性和合理性等方面对这三种方法进行了比较。     

Frequency-domain optical image reconstruction in turbid media: an experimental study of single-target detectability

An experimental study of the detectability of an object embedded in optically tissue-equivalent media by frequency-domain image reconstruction is presented. The experiments were performed in an 86-mm-diameter cylindrical phantom containing an optically homogeneous cylindrical target whose absorption and scattering properties presented a 2:1 contrast with the background medium. The parameter space explored during experimentation involved object size (15-, 8-, and 4-mm targets) and location (centered, 20-mm off-centered, and 35-mm off-centered) variations. Image reconstruction was achieved with a previously reported regularized least-squares approach that incorporates finite-element solutions of the diffusion equation and Newton's method solutions of the nonlinear minimization problem. Also included during image formation were image enhancement schemes-(1) total variation minimization, (2) dual meshing, and (3) spatial low-pass filtering-which have recently been added. Quantitative measures of image quality including the size, location, and shape of the heterogeneity along with errors in its recovered optical property values are used to quantify the image reconstructions. The results show that a near 22:1 ratio of tissue thickness relative to detectable object size has been achieved with this approach in the laboratory conditions and parameter space that have been investigated.     

Influence of size parameter and refractive index of the scatterer on polarization-gated optical imaging through turbid media

The influence of incident polarized light, refractive index, and size parameter of the scatterer on achievable resolution and contrast (image quality) of polarization-gated transillumination imaging in turbid media is reported here. Differential polarization detection led to significant improvement of image quality of an object embedded in a medium of small-sized scatterers (diameter Dor=lambda,g>or=0.7), the improvement in image quality was less pronounced using either linear or circular polarization gating when the refractive index of the scatterer was high (ns=1.59), but for a lower value of refractive index (ns=1.37), image quality improved with the differential circular polarization gating. We offer a plausible explanation for these observations.     

Effect of refractive index on the measurement of optical properties in turbid media

Continuous-wave measurement-based methods offer a rapid cost-effective way to determine optical properties in turbid media. This method requires a measure of the refractive index of the medium, which is often unknown a priori. Whereas previous studies have reported that the refractive index has little impact on the measurement of optical properties, here we show a significant effect of refractive indices on measurements, using both simulations and experiments. In addition we propose a noniterative method to determine the refractive index of the medium. This method can also provide an optimal initial guess of the optical properties for the standard iterative method for determining optical properties in turbid media. Our method is confirmed by simulations and experiments with latex spheres and Intralipid suspensions.     

Optical remote sensing of marine constituents in coastal waters: a feasibility study

Optical remote sensing of ocean color is a well-established technique for inferring ocean properties. However, most retrieval algorithms are based on the assumption that the radiance received by satellite instruments is affected only by the phytoplankton pigment concentration and correlated substances. This assumption works well for open ocean water but becomes questionable for coastal waters. To reduce uncertainties associated with this assumption, we developed a new algorithm for the retrieval of marine constituents in a coastal environment. We assumed that ocean color can be adequately described by a three-component model made up of chlorophyll a, suspended matter, and yellow substance. The simultaneous retrieval of these three marine constituents and of the atmospheric aerosol content was accomplished through an inverse-modeling scheme in which the difference between simulated radiances exiting the atmosphere and radiances measured with a satellite sensor was minimized. Simulated radiances were generated with a comprehensive radiative transfer model that is applicable to the coupled atmosphere-ocean system. The method of simulated annealing was used to minimize the difference between measured and simulated radiances. To evaluate the retrieval algorithm, we used simulated (instead of measured) satellite-received radiances that were generated for specified concentrations of aerosols and marine constituents, and we tested the ability of the algorithm to retrieve assumed concentrations. Our results require experimental validation but show that the retrieval of marine constituents in coastal waters is possible.     

Attribute continuity in cognitive diagnosis models: impact on parameter estimation and its detection

Behaviormetrika - Most cognitive diagnosis models assume that skills or attributes are binary latent variables, which greatly simplifies the interpretation of model parameters. However, the...