ESTIMATES OF WATER-QUALITY IN COASTAL WATERS USING MULTI-DATE LANDSATTHEMATIC MAPPER DATA

An evaluation of Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) data for the routine mon itoring of surface chlorophyll concentration (C) and Secchi disk depth (SDD, a measure of the water clarity) used Cockburn Sound as a study area. Multi-temporal empirical algorithms to predict these parameters have been developed from the atmospherically-corrected satellite-recei ved radiance and field data collected at the time of the satellite ove rpass. Highly significant, predictive algorithms for the surface C (ra nge: 0.2-2.7 mug l-1) and SDD (range: 4-15 m) were obtained using band s 1 and 3 of the Thematic mapper. It is shown that a high confidence m ay be placed on the predictions using these algorithms and therefore i t offers a cost-effective tool for complementing regular monitoring pr ogrammes.