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Particle-associated optical backscatter of Chesapeake Bay after Hurricane Isabel

 
   
    Preliminary view of particle-associated optical backscatter in Chesapeake
Bay before and after Hurricane Isabel, September 2003. "Warm" colors (reds
and oranges) are indicative of sediment suspended in the water column,
while "cool" colors (purples and blues) indicate lower concentrations of
suspended sediment. The body of water in the center of the images is
Chesapeake Bay; the estuary to the north is Delaware Bay. Atlantic Ocean
waters can be seen in the lower right corner. Land is shown in gray. (A)
Chesapeake Bay two days before Hurricane Isabel landfall on the Outer Banks
of North Carolina. (B) Chesapeake Bay one day after landfall. Both
Chesapeake Bay and adjacent continental shelf waters (lower right corner)
now contain significantly higher levels of particulates than before.
Original SeaWiFS (satellite ocean color) data provided courtesy of the NASA
SeaWiFS Project and ORBIMAGE. Images processed by University of South
Florida Institute for Marine Remote Sensing, a USGS co-op partner.
   
           


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