The enclosed and marginal seas surrounding the European continent exhibit a wide spectrum of environmental traits, ranging from sub-polar to sub-tropical climates, from shallow continental shelves to deep oceanic basins, from pristine marine reserves to regions impacted by countless economic and recreational activities. Understanding the inner workings of these seas – aiming to reconcile the conflicting needs of protecting their ecological balance and exploiting their natural resources – requires adequate observation systems, integrating both in situ and remote sensing techniques. This volume reviews the current potential of Earth Observations, while devoting particular attention to applications dealing with the issues, peculiarities and special challenges posed by the European Seas. The assessment of surface parameters by means of passive techniques – which measure reflected visible and near-infrared sunlight, or surface emissions in the thermal infrared or microwave spectral regions – is addressed. Active techniques – which use transmitted impulses of visible or microwave radiation, for a subsequent evaluation of the signal returned by the water surface – are covered as well. An in-depth analysis of the specific merits and drawbacks of each spectral region, and of both passive and active techniques, provides clues to help compose the unique mosaic of dynamical and bio-geo-chemical features of the European Seas.
Audience:
Scientists and researchers working in the field of Earth and Marine Science. Lecturers and tutors, as well as (graduate) students, in the same field. Academic Libraries.
Author(s): Vittorio Barale (auth.), Vittorio Barale, Martin Gade (eds.)
Edition: 1
Publisher: Springer Netherlands
Year: 2008
Language: English
Pages: 514
Tags: Remote Sensing/Photogrammetry; Oceanography; Applied Earth Sciences; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Ecotoxicology
Front Matter....Pages i-xxi
The European Marginal and Enclosed Seas: An Overview....Pages 3-22
Remote Sensing of the European Seas: A Historical Outlook....Pages 23-32
Ocean Colour Remote Sensing of the Optically Complex European Seas....Pages 35-52
Case Studies of Optical Remote Sensing in the Barents Sea, Black Sea and Caspian Sea....Pages 53-66
Variations in the Phytoplankton of the North-Eastern Atlantic Ocean: From the Irish Sea to the Bay of Biscay....Pages 67-78
Optical Remote Sensing of the North Sea....Pages 79-90
Optical Remote Sensing Applications in the Baltic Sea....Pages 91-102
Open Waters Optical Remote Sensing of the Mediterranean Sea....Pages 103-116
Optical Remote Sensing of Intertidal Flats....Pages 117-128
Visible and Infrared Remote Sensing of the White Sea Bio-Geo-Chemistry and Hydrology....Pages 129-140
Remote Sensing of Coastal Upwelling in the North-Eastern Atlantic Ocean....Pages 141-152
On the Use of Thermal Images for Circulation Studies: Applications to the Eastern Mediterranean Basin....Pages 153-164
Current Tracking in the Mediterranean Sea Using Thermal Satellite Imagery....Pages 165-176
The Next Generation of Multi-Sensor Merged Sea Surface Temperature Data Sets for Europe....Pages 177-188
Laser Remote Sensing of the European Marine Environment: LIF Technology and Applications....Pages 189-204
Microwave Radiometry and Radiometers for Ocean Applications....Pages 207-222
Microwave Aperture Synthesis Radiometry: Paving the Path for Sea Surface Salinity Measurement from Space....Pages 223-238
Sea Ice Parameters from Microwave Radiometry....Pages 239-250
Introduction to Microwave Active Techniques and Backscatter Properties....Pages 251-268
Scatterometer Applications in the European Seas....Pages 269-282
Radar Altimetry: Introduction and Application to Air-Sea Interaction....Pages 283-294
15 Years of Altimetry at Various Scales over the Mediterranean....Pages 295-306
Can we Reconstruct the 20 th Century Sea Level Variability in the Mediterranean Sea on the Basis of Recent Altimetric Measurements?....Pages 307-318
Internal Waves Generated in the Straits of Gibraltar and Messina: Observations from Space....Pages 319-330
High Resolution Wind Field Retrieval from Synthetic Aperture Radar: North Sea Examples....Pages 331-342
Satellite Imaging for Maritime Surveillance of the European Seas....Pages 343-358
Oil Spill Detection in Northern European Waters: Approaches and Algorithms....Pages 359-370
The Use of Satellite Imagery from Archives to Monitor Oil Spills in the Mediterranean Sea....Pages 371-382
Sea Ice Monitoring in the Arctic and Baltic Sea Using SAR....Pages 383-398
SAR Observation of Rip Currents off the Portuguese Coast....Pages 399-410
Current Measurements in European Coastal Waters and Rivers by Along-Track InSAR....Pages 411-422
Wave and Current Observations in European Waters by Ground-Based X-Band Radar....Pages 423-434
Nautical Radar Measurements in Europe: Applications of WaMos II as a Sensor for Sea State, Current and Bathymetry....Pages 435-446
Land-Based Over-the-Horizon Radar Techniques for Monitoring the North-East Atlantic Coastal Zone....Pages 447-460
Multi-Sensor Observations of Meso-Scale Features in European Coastal Waters....Pages 463-474
Multi-Sensor Remote Sensing of Coastal Discharge Plumes: A Mediterranean Test Site....Pages 475-486
Sea Ice Monitoring in the European Arctic Seas Using a Multi-Sensor Approach....Pages 487-498
Back Matter....Pages 499-513
