Participation Type
Paper
Session Title
Session 4.10 Environment and Ecology
Presentation #1 Title
Modeling Cyanobacteria Concentrations in the Ohio River Using Satellite Imagery
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
Algal blooms have become a large concern over recent decades due in part to the ability of cyanobacteria to secrete toxins that could potentially harm other aquatic organisms and humans. Most studies using remote sensing to investigate algal blooms have mainly been conducted on marine, estuary, and lentic (lakes) systems, in which vertical stratification of the water occurs naturally; however, large lotic (rivers) systems, in which water may be vertically well mixed, have been largely ignored. This study correlates spectral information (reflected wavelengths) from Landsat 8 to ground-truth water samples to construct a model that estimates concentrations of the cyanobacteria in a large lotic system, the Ohio River. An underwater instrument was deployed for a month at a time with water quality samples including phycocyanin concentrations. Phycocyanin, which is a blue pigment found within cyanobacteria, facilitates photosynthesis and has a different spectral signal than chlorophyll. By obtaining cyanobacteria concentrations at a known point on the satellite image while the satellite is flying over the study area, cyanobacteria concentrations are estimated for that section of the Ohio River. Data are further used in constructing a model for estimating concentrations of the cyanobacteria over a larger spatial scale on the Ohio River. The ability to predict algal blooms in lotic systems is limited with traditional water quality methodologies due to the size and characteristics of the system; however, the hope of this research is that knowing the cyanobacteria concentrations at a large scale will help predict algal blooms in the near future.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
First grad student at Marshall University in the biology department looking at the energy flow in large rivers primarily the Ohio River.
Modeling Cyanobacteria Concentrations in the Ohio River Using Satellite Imagery
Corbly Hall 464
Algal blooms have become a large concern over recent decades due in part to the ability of cyanobacteria to secrete toxins that could potentially harm other aquatic organisms and humans. Most studies using remote sensing to investigate algal blooms have mainly been conducted on marine, estuary, and lentic (lakes) systems, in which vertical stratification of the water occurs naturally; however, large lotic (rivers) systems, in which water may be vertically well mixed, have been largely ignored. This study correlates spectral information (reflected wavelengths) from Landsat 8 to ground-truth water samples to construct a model that estimates concentrations of the cyanobacteria in a large lotic system, the Ohio River. An underwater instrument was deployed for a month at a time with water quality samples including phycocyanin concentrations. Phycocyanin, which is a blue pigment found within cyanobacteria, facilitates photosynthesis and has a different spectral signal than chlorophyll. By obtaining cyanobacteria concentrations at a known point on the satellite image while the satellite is flying over the study area, cyanobacteria concentrations are estimated for that section of the Ohio River. Data are further used in constructing a model for estimating concentrations of the cyanobacteria over a larger spatial scale on the Ohio River. The ability to predict algal blooms in lotic systems is limited with traditional water quality methodologies due to the size and characteristics of the system; however, the hope of this research is that knowing the cyanobacteria concentrations at a large scale will help predict algal blooms in the near future.
