Maryland Sea Grant is hiring a Professional Development and Aquaculture Education Coordinator. More details.
R/E-24J
Discrimination of Phytoplankton Taxa in the Optically Complex Waters of Chesapeake Bay
Principal Investigator:
Greg SilsbeStart/End Year:
2020 - 2021Institution:
Horn Point Laboratory, University of Maryland Center for Environmental ScienceCo-Principal Investigator:
Anna WindleTopic(s):
Strategic focus area:
Healthy coastal ecosystemsDescription:
A spectral library of remote sensing reflectance for major phytoplankton taxonomic groups in the Chesapeake Bay will be developed using measured and modeled inherent optical properties as inputs into radiative transfer equations (HydroLight TM). The spectral library will be used to develop a phytoplankton discrimination algorithm in order to distinguish major phytoplankton taxa and sediment types in Chesapeake Bay waters. Hyperspectral remote sensing reflectance spectra collected from an unoccupied aircraft system (UAS) or the upcoming hyperspectral satellite mission, PACE, can be used as inputs to the algorithm to effectively quantify and map phytoplankton taxonomic-specific biomass. This proposed research has the potential to significantly improve decision making regarding water quality in the Chesapeake Bay.
Program Announcements
News and Blogs
Featured Fellow
Shivish Bhandari is a graduate student in the Bioenvironmental Science Ph.D. program at Morgan State University studying environment-genome interaction in Eastern oysters. Outside of his studies, Shivish enjoys traveling, bird watching, and photography.
Featured Research Project
Using Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis to Value Shallow Water Ecosystem Services in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay
In the Chesapeake Bay, resource managers are currently struggling with how to develop policy to inform aquaculture (AQ) industry expansion while supporting environmental Bay goals. Specifically, the recent expansion of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) into and near oyster AQ leases is creating tension between definitions of Bay resilience. To inform policy decisions that consider ecosystem service values, I propose applying a multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) of in-water and nearshore ecosystem services in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay.
