Impulse response solution to the three-dimensional vector radiative transfer equation in atmosphere-ocean systems. II. The hybrid matrix operator-Monte Carlo method

A hybrid method is developed to solve the vector radiative transfer equation (VRTE) in a threedimensional atmosphere-ocean system (AOS). The system is divided into three parts: the atmosphere, the dielectric interface, and the ocean. The Monte Carlo method is employed to calculate the impulse response functions (Green functions) for the atmosphere and ocean. The impulse response function of the dielectric interface is calculated by the Fresnel formulas. The matrix operator method is then used to couple these impulse response functions to obtain the vector radiation field for the AOS. The primary advantage of this hybrid method is that it solves the VRTE efficiently in an AOS with different dielectric interfaces while keeping the same atmospheric and oceanic conditions. For the first time, we present the downward radiance field in an ocean with a sinusoidal ocean wave. (c) 2008 Optical Society of America.