Macroalgal blooms (MABs) of various types have been reported to have increased in recent years in the global oceans, with both ecological and economic implications. In the Yellow Sea, the world's largest MABs of Ulva prolifera were first reported in summer 2008; Yet, due to the limitations of traditional investigative techniques and data, we have little knowledge of spatial and temporal dynamic distribution and its causes.
Recently, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research Dr. Xing and his co-workers from Remote Sensing and Application Team, have proposed a new index for mapping floating macroalgae (VB-FAH, which is named as Virtual-Baseline Floating macroalgae Height), for Chinese own multi-band, high resolution, wide field of environmental satellite (HJ-1), to detect historical information on green tide in Yellow Sea and East China Sea using Landsat and HJ-1 images. Results show, in terms of interannual variability, MABs for the first time can date back to 1999 summer in the south of the Yellow Sea southwest of Shandong Peninsula; In terms of seasonal changes, early bloom may occurrence in the East China Sea in winter and early spring (e.g., February and March); MABs are also found to extend to the East China Sea as far south as 26°N near Fujian Province and Taiwan, and as far east as the Kuroshio Current. These new findings provide important information for exploring the origins, causes, and consequences of MABs in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea. Present results suggest that MABs might be induced by the“rotten seedling/thallus” hazards in nori farm.
The research results published and displayed in the Environment and Geography journal Remote Sensing of Environment (IF: 6.4), this work was supported by IOCAS pilot projects and one hundred thirty-five planning project.
Papers link: Qianguo Xing, Chuanmin Hu (2016), Mapping macroalgal blooms in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea using HJ-1 and Landsat data: Application of a virtual baseline reflectance height technique, Remote Sensing of Environment, 178,113-116
