Abstract

Photochemical and optical properties of seawater are controlled by the absorbance spectrum of the chromophores and by the light intensity and spectral distribution at depth. These parameters are not commonly measured together. Solar penetration has previously been estimated from short-and long-wavelength insulation formulas or has been modeled from multiple wavelength attenuation formulas. On two cruises in the Caribbean Sea in the spring and fall of 1988, irradiance data were collected at selected depths in the photic zone and concurrently at the surface, using LICOR spectroradiometers. Absorbance measurements by a spectrophotometer were made on water collected by CTD casts within a few hours of the light profiles. Particulate scattering was determined by absorption measurements on filtered (0.45-µm) and unfiltered water samples.

© 1989 Optical Society of America