Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Bioluminescence In A Complex Coastal Environment: 1. Temporal Dynamics Of Nighttime Water-Leaving Radiance, Mark A. Moline, Matthew J. Oliver, Curtis D. Mobley, Lydia Sundman, Thomas J. Bensky, Trisha Bergmann, W. Paul Bissett, James Case, Erika H. Raymond, Oscar M.E. Schofield

Thomas Bensky

Nighttime water-leaving radiance is a function of the depth-dependent distribution of both the in situ bioluminescence emissions and the absorption and scattering properties of the water. The vertical distributions of these parameters were used as inputs for a modified one-dimensional radiative transfer model to solve for spectral bioluminescence water-leaving radiance from prescribed depths of the water column. Variation in the water-leaving radiance was consistent with local episodic physical forcing events, with tidal forcing, terrestrial runoff, particulate accumulation, and biological responses influencing the shorter timescale dynamics. There was a >90 nm shift in the peak water-leaving radiance from blue (~474 nm) …