Water depth measurement using an airborne pulsed neon laser system

Spatial variability of oceanic phycoerythrin spectral types derived from airborne laser-induced fluorescence emissions

We report spatial variability of oceanic phycoerythrin spectral types detected by means of a blue spectral shift in airborne laser-induced fluorescence emission. The blue shift of the phycoerythrobilin fluorescence is known from laboratory studies to be induced by phycourobilin chromophore substitution at phycoerythrobilin chromophore sites in some strains of phycoerythrin-containing marine cyanobacteria. The airborne 532-nm laser-induced phycoerythrin fluorescence of the upper oceanic volume showed distinct segregation of cyanobacterial chromophore types in a flight transect from coastal water to the Sargasso Sea in the western North Atlantic. High phycourobilin levels were restricted to the oceanic (oligotrophic) end of the flight transect, in agreement with historical ship findings. These remotely observed phycoerythrin spectral fluorescence shifts have the potential to permit rapid, wide-area studies of the spatial variability of spectrally distinct cyanobacteria, especially across interfacial regions of coastal and oceanic water masses. Airborne laser-induced phytoplankton spectral fluorescence observations also further the development of satellite algorithms for passive detection of phytoplankton pigments. Optical modifications to the NASA Airborne Oceanographic Lidar are briefly described that permitted observation of the fluorescence spectral shifts.

Laser sensing of a subsurface oceanic layer. I. Effect of the atmosphere and wind-driven sea waves

Depth profiles and polarization characteristics of airborne lidar return signals have been calculated by the Monte Carlo method. We analyze some peculiarities of depth profiles of lidar return signals for a rough air-water interface. The distorting effect of the atmosphere on the lidar return signal structure is evaluated as a function of the geometry of the observations. Calculated results are compared with the data of airborne lidar measurements for lambda = 0.53 mum.

Airborne lidar detection of subsurface oceanic scattering layers

The airborne lidar detection and cross-sectional mapping of submerged oceanic scattering layers are reported. The field experiment was conducted in the Atlantic Ocean southeast of Assateague Island, VA. NASA's Airborne Oceanographic Lidar was operated in the bathymetric mode to acquire on-wavelength 532-nm depth-resolved backscatter signals from shelf/slope waters. Unwanted laser pulse reflection from the airwater interface was minimized by spatial filtering and off-nadir operation. The presence of thermal stratification over the shelf was verified by the deployment of airborne expendable bathythermographs. Optical beam transmission measurements acquired from a surface truthing vessel indicated the presence of a layer of turbid water near the sea floor over the inner portion of the shelf.

Radiance-ratio algorithm wavelengths for remote oceanic chlorophyll determination

Two-band radiance-ratio in-water algorithms in the visible spectrum have been evaluated for remote oceanic chlorophyll determination. Airborne active-passive (laser-solar) data from coastal, shelf-slope, and bluewater regions were used to generate 2-D chlorophyll-fluorescence and radiance-ratio statistical correlation matrices containing all possible two-band ratio combinations from the thirty-two available contiguous 11.25-nm passive bands. The principal finding was that closely spaced radiance-ratio bands yield chlorophyll estimates which are highly correlated with laser-induced chlorophyll fluorescence within several distinct regions of the ocean color spectrum. Band combinations in the yellow (~565/575-nm), orange-red (~675/685-nm), and red (~695/705-nm) spectral regions showed considerable promise for satisfactory chlorophyll pigment estimation in near-coastal Case II waters. Based on very limited data, pigment recovery in Case I waters was best accomplished using blue-green radiance ratios in the ~490/500-nm region.

Airborne detection of oceanic turbidity cell structure using depth-resolved laser-induced water Raman backscatter

Airborne depth-resolved laser-induced sea-water Raman-backscatter waveforms have been obtained along a flight line extending westward from a point approximately 30 km seaward of Assateague Island to a point where the beach was intersected at latitude 38.1 degrees N and longitude 75.2 degrees W. Pulses from a 337.1-nm nitrogen laser were repetitively transmitted vertically downward into the water column. The laser-induced water Raman backscatter pulse at 381-nm wavelength was depth (or time) resolved into forty bins having widths of -25 cm each. When converted to along-track profiles, the waveforms reveal cells of decreased Raman backscatter superimposed on an overall trend of monotonically decreasing water column optical transmission. This airborne lidar technique shows potential for (1) rapid, quantitative, synoptic study of the homogeneity of the oceanic water column and (2) measurement of the horizontal spatial distribution of the optical transmission of the upper mixed layer of the ocean. A multiple convolution model of a Gaussian transmitted pulse, Gaussian sea surface height, and slope probability density, together with an exponential-decay water-column impulse response, is shown to qualitatively account for the observed pulse shape.

Airborne dual laser excitation and mapping of phytoplankton photopigments in a Gulf Stream Warm Core Ring

Utilization of a two-color airborne lidar system in the systematic study of a major oceanographic feature is reported here for the first time. An excimer pumped dye laser was optically and electronically integrated into the NASA Airborne Oceanographic Lidar for simultaneous use with a frequency doubled Nd:YAG laser. The output beams exit the laser system along parallel paths after being produced on an alternating pulse basis at a combined rate of 12.5 pps. Results are presented for missions flown over a Gulf Stream Warm Core Ring (WCR) as well as over shelf, slope, Gulf Stream, and Sargasso Sea waters. From the airborne data a high coherence is shown between the two-color chlorophyll a data and between the Nd:YAG chlorophyll a and phycoerythrin responses within each of these water masses. However, distinct differences in the response patterns of these photopigments are shown to exist between the differing water masses. At certain of the boundaries separating the water masses a sharp transition is seen to occur, while at others a wider transition zone was observed in which the correlation between the photopigments appears to degrade.

Basis for spectral curvature algorithms in remote sensing of chlorophyll

A simple, empirically derived algorithm for estimating oceanic chlorophyll concentrations from spectral radiances measured by a low-flying spectroradiometer has proved highly successful in field experiments in 1980-82. The sensor used was the Multichannel Ocean Color Sensor, and the originator of the algorithm was G. W. Grew, NASA CP-2188 (1981). This paper presents an explanation for the algorithm based on the optical properties of waters containing chlorophyll and other phytoplankton pigments and the radiative transfer equations governing the remotely sensed signal. The effects of varying solar zenith, atmospheric transmittance, and interfering substances in the water on the chlorophyll algorithm are characterized, and applicability of the algorithm is discussed.

Some emerging applications of lasers

New laser applications are emerging in almost every field of science. Many of them show both a high degree of technical sophistication and broad practical utility. The progress being made is illustrated by specific applications in three areas: laser microchemistry, optical disk data storage, and remote sensing.

Interpretation of airborne oceanic lidar: effects of multiple scattering

The effects of multiple scattering on the interpretation of the time dependence of elastic backscattering of laser pulses from the ocean (lidar) are investigated through solving the radiative transfer equation by Monte Carlo techniques. In particular, after removal of the geometric loss factors, it is found that the backscat-tered power is a decaying exponential function of time, over the time interval required for photons to travel four attenuation lengths through the water. The effective attenuation coefficient of this exponential decay is found to be strongly dependent on the parameters of the lidar system and on the optical properties of the water. The significant parameter is the ratio of the radius of the spot on the sea surface viewed by the lidar receiver optics to the mean free path of photons in the water. For values of this parameter near zero, the decay is determined by the beam attenuation coefficient, while for values greater than ~5-6, the decay is given by the attenuation coefficient for downwelling irradiance, often referred to as the diffuse attenuation coefficient. Between these two extremes the interpretation of the effective attenuation coefficient requires, essentially, complete knowledge of the inherent optical properties of the water: the beam attenuation coefficient and the volume scattering function.

Compact and highly sensitive fluorescence lidar for oceanographic measurements

A compact and highly sensitive helicopter-born fluorescence lidar is described. The single channel system is based on a high power, tunable laser. From an altitude of 70 m, selective detection of the tracer dye rhodamine B of less than 10(-10) g/cm(3) in natural waters is achieved.

Airborne simultaneous spectroscopic detection of laser-induced water Raman backscatter and fluorescence from chlorophyll a and other naturally occurring pigments

The airborne laser-induced spectral emission bands obtained simultaneously from water Raman backscatter and the fluorescence of chlorophyll and other naturally occurring waterborne pigments are reported here for the first time. The importance of this type data lies not only in its single-shot multispectral character but also in the application of the Raman line for correction or calibration of the spatial variation of the laser penetration depth without the need for in situ water attenuation measurements. The entire laser-induced fluorescence and Raman scatter emissions resulting from each separate 532-nm 10-nsec laser pulse are collected and spectrally dispersed in a diffraction grating spectrometer having forty photomultiplier tube detectors. Results from field experiments conducted in the North Sea and the Chesapeake Bay/Potomac River are presented. Difficulties involving the multispectral resolution of the induced emissions are addressed, and feasible solutions are suggested together with new instrument configurations and future research directions.

Absolute tracer dye concentration using airborne laser-induced water Raman backscatter

Reported here for the first time is the use of simultaneous airborne laser-induced dye fluorescence and the 3400-cm(-1) OH-stretch water Raman backscatter spectra to yield the absolute concentration of an ocean-dispersed tracer dye. Using a straightforward theoretical model, the concentration is calculated by numerically comparing the airborne laser-induced fluorescence and Raman backscatter spectra to similar laboratory data for a known dye concentration measured under comparable environmental and instrumental conditions. The dye is assumed to be uniformly mixed throughout the water column together with other interfering, fluorescent, organic matter. A minimum detectable integrated water column dye concentration of approximately 2 ppb by weight as limited by background and instrument noise is obtained. A dye concentration contour map produced from the conical scan lidar data is given.

High repetition rate frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser for airborne bathymetry

A flashlamp pumped frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser producing 7-nsec 2.8-mJ pulses at 530 nm and 400 pps has been developed for use in airborne bathymetry. A flashlamp gas mixture of krypton and xenon provides efficient laser operation and rapid lamp recovery. Pulse transmission mode operation is used to achieve a narrow pulse width. Thermally induced lensing and birefringence in the rod are compensated for in the optical resonator. Rapid, high repetition rate Pockels cell switching is accomplished with a thyratron driver. A CD*A crystal cut for 85 degrees phase matching at 55 degrees C is used to provide high conversion efficiency second harmonic generation.

Oil film thickness measurement using airborne laser-induced water Raman backscatter

The use of laser-induced water Raman backscatter for remote thin oil film detection and thickness measurement is reported here for the first time. A 337.1-nm nitrogen laser was used to excite the 3400-cm(-1) OH stretch band of natural ocean water beneath the oil slick from an altitude of 150 m. The signal strength of the 381-nm water Raman backscatter was always observed to depress when the oil was encountered and then return to its original undepressed value after complete aircraft traversal of the floating slick. After removal of background and oil fluorescence contributions, the ratio of the depressed-to-undepressed airborne water Raman signal intensities, together with laboratory measured oil extinction coefficients, is used to calculate the oil film thickness.