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SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION OF COLORED DISSOLOVED ORGANIC MATTER (CDOM) IN SOUTHERN NEW ENGALND COASTAL WATERS
Citation:
Keith, D J., J. A. Yoder, AND S. Freeman. SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION OF COLORED DISSOLOVED ORGANIC MATTER (CDOM) IN SOUTHERN NEW ENGALND COASTAL WATERS. Presented at American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, Albuquerque, NM, February 12, 2001.
Description:
The concentration of colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) is a primary factor affecting the absorption of incident sunlight in coastal and estuarine waters. CDOM is extracted from water-soluble humic substances and transported by runoff into lakes and coastal waters. CDOM is also created by the in situ decomposition of phytoplankton or seaweed in biologically productive waters. In estuaries, CDOM concentrations increase as a consequence of natural "trapping" mechanisms driven by salinity differences between fresh and salt waters and the increased presence of industrial and domestic effluents. CDOM absorption data have been collected from a variety of waters. However, there are a limited number of measurements along the US east coast and a general lack of data from New England waters. This study characterized the temporal and spatial variability of CDOM absorption over an annual cycle in Narragansett Bay and Block Island Sound (Rhode Island) and related CDOM variability to remotely sensed reflectance. Results suggest that Narragansett Bay is a CDOM-dominated estuary and the magnitude of CDOM concentration is related to the salinity variability of local waters and the seasonal freshwater input from surrounding watersheds.