PUBLICACIONES

Presentación oral en ECSA 2017 Where Land Meets Ocean: The Vulnerable Interface. Shanghai, China. 16-20 Octubre 2017

The Río de la Plata (RdP) river, located in the eastern coast of South America at approximately 35 °S, carries high amounts of suspended particulate matter making this estuary one of the most turbid in the world with mean concentrations of suspended particulate matter (SPM) ranging from 100 to 300 g m^-3 and measured maximum values around 1,000 g m^-3. The high sediment concentration, as well as its distribution, has a great impact on the different uses and functions of the RdP. The capital cities of Argentina and Uruguay (Buenos Aires and Montevideo) are located in the respective margins of the river, being the main source of drinking water of Buenos Aires, as well as the area of ​​discharge of its domestic and industrial effluents. The dredging activity in the river is very intense since access channels that allow the entry of ships from the Atlantic Ocean to upstream ports need dredging with regularity. Therefore, water quality control in this highly active and human impacted area is fundamental and the knowledge of its dynamics as well as the particle size composition using remote sensing data is highly desired and of great importance.

From mid-May until the end of October 2016 a conspicuous feature has been detected in the upper RdP estuary using remote sensing imagery, like Sentinel-2, Landsat-8, VIIRS, and MODIS sensors. This unusual plume had a different color in the RGB composite appearing brighter and more yellow comparing to the adjacent waters. In September 25, 2016 a field campaign was performed in the upper estuary and measurements were performed in and outside the plume. Water reflectance was measured and surface water samples were collected for turbidity, SPM, and particle size distribution (PSD) determinations. In this study ocean color systems with different spectral and spatial resolutions have been used to detect the highly reflective plume during the May-October 2016 period. Samples collected inside the striking plume showed different spectral characteristics, smaller median particle size, and turbidity (T) values ten times higher (T~500 FNU) than the surrounding waters. The variability of the T:SPM relationship regarding the particle size was analyzed as well as the capability to detect different particle size using ocean colour satellite data.