Estimating Coastal Lagoon Tidal Flooding and Repletion with Multidate ASTER Thermal Imagery

Coastal lagoons mix inflowing freshwater and tidal marine waters in complex spatial patterns. This project sought to detect and measure temperature and spatial variability of flood tides for a constricted coastal lagoon using multitemporal remote sensing. Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission Radiometer (ASTER) thermal infrared data provided estimates of surface temperature for delineation of repletion zones in portions of Chincoteague Bay, Virginia. ASTER high spatial resolution sea-surface temperature imagery in conjunction with in situ observations and tidal predictions helped determine the optimal seasonal data for analyses. The selected time series ASTER satellite data sets were analyzed at different tidal phases and seasons in 2004–2006. Skin surface temperatures of ocean and estuarine waters were differentiated by flood tidal penetration and ebb flows. Spatially variable tidal flood penetration was evaluated using discrete seed-pixel area analysis and time series Principal Components Analysis. Results from these techniques provide spatial extent and variability dynamics of tidal repletion, flushing, and mixing, important factors in eutrophication assessment, water quality and resource monitoring, and application of hydrodynamic modeling for coastal estuary science and management.