FY 1987

Theory of fluorescent irradiance fields in lakes and seas

Preisendorfer, R.W.

NOAA Tech. Memo. ERL PMEL-70, NTIS: PB87-196465, 249 pp (1987)

It is shown how to determine the irradiance field in lakes and seas that have fluorescing stratified layers of chlorophyll and other organic material. This is the direct solution of the irradiance field which starts from the depth-distribution of optical properties, in particular the spectral absorption and scattering functions of the material. Conversely, it is shown how to determine these optical properties, from irradiance probe measurements in situ, by inverting the direct solutions for the irradiance field. The present work forms the basis for applications of radiative transfer theory to remote sensing of seas and lakes and specifically for optically-based chlorophyll assays within such media. In particular, it is shown how to determine the intrinsic (or specific) optical properties of a natural hydrosol from irradiance measurements in the hydrosol.