Retrieval of Sea Surface Temperature from MODIS Data in Coastal Waters

Accurate measurements of sea surface temperature retrieved from remote images is a fundamental need for monitoring ocean and coastal waters. This study proposes a method for retrieving accurate measurements of SST in coastal waters. The method involves the estimation of effect of total suspended particulate matter (SPM) concentration on the value of sea surface emissivity (SSE) and the inclusion of this effect in SSE value that is put into SST calculation. Data collected in three Italian coastal waters were exploited to obtain SSTskin and SSE values and to analyze SPM effects on SSE value. The method was tested on MODIS images. Satellite measurements of SST obtained with current operational algorithm, which does not require SSE value as explicit input, were compared with in situ values of SSTskin and RMSD is equal to 1.13 K. Moreover, SST data were retrieved with an algorithm for retrieving SST measurements from MODIS data, which allows the inclusion of SSE value with SPM effect. These data were compared with in situ values of SSTskin, and RMSD is equal to 0.68 K.