Proposed Research:
Temporal Dynamics of Coral Reefs
using Remotely Sensed Data
Alicia L. Simonti
asimonti@clarku.edu
http://students.clarku.edu/~asimonti/
Master of Arts Candidate in
Geographic Information Science for Development and the Environment
International Development, Community, and Environment
Graduate School of Geography
Clark University
Worcester, MA USA
Research Advisors: Ron Eastman & John Rogan
Research Question
Can a correlation between
sea surface temperature and changes in
live coral cover be determined using a
Time Series Analysis of MODIS imagery?
2
Outline
• Importance of coral reefs
• Importance of remote sensing to coral reef
monitoring
• Study Area
• Methodology
• Conclusion: review the research question
• Q & A time
3
Why are coral reefs important?
Biological importance:
• most diverse of all marine ecosystems
Economical importance:
• stabilize shorelines/prevent erosion
• multi-million dollar fisheries industry
• tourism
4
Benefits of Remote Sensing to
Coral Reefs
Alleviates many limitations of in situ data
collection
• Ability to observe and analyze reef status across large
geographic areas
• Ability to observe and analyze reef status with much
greater temporal resolution
5
Study Area:
Mesoamerican Barrier Reef
l
Map courtesy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
http://www.coral.noaa.gov/reef_maps/volume1/belize_large.jpg
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Data and Imagery
Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrodiometer
(MODIS):
Multispectral, 250 m, 1-2 days, 2000-2007
Sea Surface Temperature Product
Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer
(ASTER):
Multispectral, 15 & 30 m, 5 days, 2000-2007
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Methodology
• Summarize current literature
• Mask out terrestrial areas
• Depth/bathymetry determination
• Depth/bathymetric correction
• Map live coral cover
• Time series analysis
• Correlation
8
Methodology
Interference of Water
Image courtesy of Joyce and Phinn, in prep
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Methodology: Live Coral Index
Images courtesy of Joyce et al., in preparation
10
Methodology: Time Series Analysis
TSA Component 5: South America
1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
0.15
NDVI
0.10
0.05
0.00
-0.05
-0.10
-0.15
11
Methodology: Correlation
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Methodology
Acquire & organize data
Summarize water & coral
LCI
Mask land
Time Series
Water determination/correction
Learn LCI (Live coral index)
Correlation
Develop LCI for MODIS
Apply LCI
13
Research Question
Can a correlation between
sea surface temperature and changes in
live coral cover be determined using a
Time Series Analysis of MODIS imagery?
14
Proposed Research:
Temporal Dynamics of Coral Reefs
using Remotely Sensed Data
Alicia L. Simonti
asimonti@clarku.edu
http://students.clarku.edu/~asimonti/
Master of Arts Candidate in
Geographic Information Science for Development and the Environment
International Development, Community, and Environment
Graduate School of Geography
Clark University
Worcester, MA USA
Research Advisors: Ron Eastman & John Rogan
Timeline
Summer 2007
Fall 2007
Spring 2008
Acquire & organize data
Summarize: coral and water
Research LCI
Preprocessing
Apply LCI
Time series analysis
Correlation
Compare with current literature
Generate final paper
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