Research Areas > Stormwater > Stormwater Plume Behavior
Research Area: Remote Sensing of Stormwater Plumes
Satellite imagery of stormwater plumes is a useful tool for studying coastal water quality. In southern California, surface freshwater discharge after rainstorms is a main source of pollution to coastal waters. In discharged freshwater, high concentrations of suspended sediments and colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) result in a brownish rather than blue color on the ocean surface. Because the optical properties of surface waters are correlated with salinity, the optical signatures of river plumes can be used as a proxy for salinity in order to track their spatio-temporal distribution. Advantages of using satellite imagery rather than field sampling include lower costs and synoptic views of freshwater plumes containing pollutants.
SCCWRP Research
River discharge along the coast of the Southern California Bight (SCB) is associated with episodic winter rainstorms, when stormwater plumes take on a brownish color (resulting from a high concentration of suspended sediments and CDOM) and become clearly visible. Throughout the year, SCCWRP scientists analyze satellite images of approximately 1-km spatial resolution from three NASA-operated satellites: Sea-viewing Wide-Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometers (MODIS-Terra and MODIS-Aqua).
Remote sensing research projects include:
MODIS true-color images of plumes from the Santa Clara River on February 29, 2004 (left) and March 25, 2005 (right).
This page was last updated on: 1/27/2010