Sensitivity of Reef-Relevant Ocean Color Phenomena to Satellite Data Resolution
June 18, 2025
Utilizing high-resolution ocean color data to enhance coral reef habitat assessment and real-time monitoring of reef change.
Satellite ocean color measurements are a valuable tool for evaluating water quality parameters relevant to coral reef habitats. However, low earth orbiting satellites offer a limited number of observations for detecting episodic, extreme events to which coral reefs are sensitive, and the spatial resolution of most sensors is too coarse for fine scale processes in optically shallow nearshore environments. Here, we assess whether high-resolution satellite ocean color measurements from the first geostationary satellite ocean color sensor (GOCI) can improve our understanding of coral reef habitat conditions and monitoring capabilities for potential reef changes. We find that high-resolution ocean color data can enable us to assign more reliable risk to coral reef tracts that could be affected by frequent episodic events, and allows us to assess the persistence of such events in waters much closer to coastal habitat.
Perelman JN, Shi H, Rykaczewski RR, Suca JJ, Vandermeulen RA, Matthews D 2025. Sensitivity of reef-relevant ocean color phenomena to satellite data resolution. Coral Reefs. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-025-02675-0