Impact of measurement uncertainties on determination of chlorophyll‐specific absorption coefficient for marine phytoplankton1. Issue 12 (30th December 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: McKee, David; Röttgers, Rüdiger; Neukermans, Griet; Calzado, Violeta Sanjuan; Trees, Charles; Ampolo‐Rella, Marina; Neil, Claire; Cunningham, Alex
• Is Part Of: Journal of geophysical research. Volume 119:Issue 12(2014:Dec.)
• Page Start: 9013
• Page End: 9025
• Publication Date: 2014-12-30
• Subjects: Oceanography -- Periodicals; 551.4605
• DOI: 10.1002/2014JC009909
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2169-9275

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main"> <title>Abstract</title> <p>Understanding variability in the chlorophyll‐specific absorption of marine phytoplankton, <italic>a_ph^*_Chl (λ)</italic>, is essential for primary production modelling, calculation of underwater light field characteristics, and development of algorithms for remote sensing of chlorophyll concentrations. Previous field and laboratory studies have demonstrated significant apparent variability in <italic>a_ph^*_Chl (λ)</italic> for natural samples and algal cultures. However, the potential impact of measurement uncertainties on derived values of <italic>a_ph^*_Chl (λ)</italic> has received insufficient study. This study presents an analysis of measurement uncertainties for a data set collected in the Ligurian Sea in Spring and assesses the impact on estimates of <italic>a_ph^*_Chl (λ)</italic>. It is found that a large proportion of apparent variability in this set of <italic>a_ph^*_Chl (λ)</italic> can be attributed to measurement errors. Application of the same analysis to the global NOMAD data set suggests that a significant fraction of variability in <italic>a_ph^*_Chl (λ)</italic> may also be due to measurement errors.</p> </abstract>