Ocean Primary Production in China Shelf Sea Estimated with SeaWiFS and MODIS

Ocean primary production (OPP) is an important indicator of ocean ecological system. The spatial and temporal pattern of OPP is helpful for global climate change study. Remote sensing has the advantage of dynamic and large-scale information collection. Integration of remote sensing and ecological model is promising for OPP study. The aim of our study is to: 1) choose the suitable coefficient algorithms in models for OPP calculation; 2) provide satellite-derived OPP pattern in China Shelf Sea. We have chosen VGPM (Vertical Generalized Production Model) to estimate OPP for its extensive validation. Some parameters of VGPM were calculated using new algorithms instead. Most of the parameters were estimated using SeaWiFS and MODIS data. The OPP in the China Shelf Sea were estimated using VGPM model. And a simple test was also implemented. The correlation coefficient between in situ OPP and estimated one is over 0.5. OPP variation was also analyzed in China Shelf Sea. The result shows that the OPP model based on the specific chlorophyll algorithm in China sea area can reveal the environment better. This method can provide reference for the large-scale tendency research of OPP in the whole sea area.