PhD

PhD in Biology (2007). Dep. of Biology, University of Buenos Aires (UBA). Advisors: Dr. D. A. Gagliardini and Dra. I. Schloss

In the present thesis ocean color images were used to estimate chlorophyll-a concentration (Chla), as a proxy to phytoplankton biomass, to characterize ecological regions within the Patagonian Continental Shelf (PCS). A comprehensive analysis of the main steps required to process ocean color images was performed, i.e. the atmospheric correction scheme, the evaluation of the satellite-derived Chla, and a temporal series analysis of Chla maps. An algorithm was developed to correct ocean color images from the MMRS sensor, onboard the argentine satellite SAC-C. The theoretical performance was good, but the marine reflectance values obtained after correcting MMRS data were low compared to the corresponding SeaWiFS reflectance. The discrepancies may be due to failure in one of the model’s assumptions, radiometric calibration errors, and to the large noise in the data. Uncertainties in the retrieval of satellite-derived surface Chla have been evaluated in the Patagonian Continental Shelf for the first time. Two global and two regional ocean color products, applied to SeaWiFS and MODIS imagery, have been compared to in situ Chla measurements collected on summer and autumn oceanographic cruises between 2001 and 2004. The OC4v4 standard global algorithm performed better than the other algorithms analyzed; a systematic error was found in the satellite-derived Chla showing a general overestimation at low Chla and an underestimation at high Chla. A regional analysis showed that there was a substantial difference in the performance of the SeaWiFS and MODIS algorithms regarding the location of the sampled sites. A 6year time series of SeaWiFS Chla derived images were analyzed in order to characterize the temporal evolution of the Chla. The analyzed images permitted to identify a differential distribution pattern of pigment concentrations in four regions in the PCS. The temporal evolution of the spatial mean Chla values averaged over the PCS showed the biological importance (increased biomass) of the frontal zones, even though restricted to small regions.