Abstract
Abstract
The Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) was investigated for its performance in monitoring dynamic riverine surface water turbidity. China's Hanjiang River, the largest tributary of the Yangtze River, was used as a case study. Field surveys conducted between April 2013 and January 2014 show a wide range of turbidity (15.8–130.2 nephelometric turbidity units). A practical exponential retrieval algorithm used in conjunction with OLI bands on Landsat 8 was developed to assess compatibility between satellite remote sensing reflectance and in situ measured data. Results obtained for the study area accurately match in situ data at most stations (R2 > 0.90) for the validation phase. It was found that Landsat 8 OLI imagery can be used to estimate turbidity in inland riverine systems when a suitable retrieval algorithm is applied. In addition, algal blooms in the riverine system can be detected by OLI imagery.
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