Sea Surface Flow Estimation with Infrared and Visible Imagery

Abstract

Sequential Nimbus-7 CZCS infrared and visible images obtained on orbits 3157 and 3171 during 9?10 June 1979 have been used to derive sea surface flow from advective sea surface pattern displacements and elapsed time. Individual analyses with infrared (11 microns) and visible blue/yellow ratio (0.443 and 0.550 microns) pairs of images yielded coherent velocity distributions over an oceanic region near Georges Bank. A composite of eighty flow vectors illustrates a seaward diversion of cold surface water off Northeast Channel, Gulf of Maine by a northeastward intrusion of Gulf Stream water along the continental slope. These results demonstrate that instances arise when infrared and visible surface pattern changes can be used jointly to compose flow regimes. A sea surface topography map derived from the composite vector distribution has a range of 20 cm and an expected repeatability of 0.39 cm.