Coastal Downwelling Irradiance Measurements from Fixed Hawaiian Platforms

Downwelling irradiance data was collected at seven distinct visible wavebands from fixed platforms along the coast of Hawaii. Measurements were taken by Oregon State University over a two-year period from January 1997 to January 1999 for the HALE-ALOHA project. This dataset provides a time series of light penetration in oligotrophic coastal waters.

Use Cases

• Modeling primary productivity by analyzing irradiance trends across seven visible wavebands over time.
• Assessing water clarity and optical properties in Hawaiian coastal waters using the multi-spectral irradiance measurements.
• Calibrating satellite ocean color data by comparing in-situ downwelling irradiance from fixed platforms with remote sensing estimates.
• Studying diurnal and seasonal light cycles in an oligotrophic habitat using the continuous two-year time series.

Strengths

• Multi-spectral data captured at seven visible wavebands provides detailed optical information.
• Two-year continuous time series from January 1997 to January 1999 enables seasonal trend analysis.
• Data collected from fixed platforms ensures consistent geospatial reference points for time-series comparison.

Limitations

• Temporal coverage is limited to a specific two-year period ending in 1999, lacking recent observations.
• Geographic scope is restricted to coastal waters of Hawaii, limiting broader oceanic applicability.
• Specific sample size, row count, and data resolution (e.g., measurement frequency) are unknown.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI Accession 0000497), originally collected by Oregon State University.

Collection Method

Measured from fixed platforms using instruments capturing downwelling irradiance.

Time Range

13 January 1997 to 27 January 1999

Freshness

Data collection ended on 27 January 1999; it is a historical snapshot with no ongoing updates.

Geography

Coastal waters of Hawaii and other unspecified locations.