Retrieval algorithm of chlorophyll-a concentration for coastal waters based on ridge regression

Abstract. In this paper, we use the multiple scattering near-infrared aerosol correction model of SeaDAS to execute the atmospheric correction for Terra/Aqua MODIS remote sensing data, and also use three standard operational chlorophyll-a concentration inversion algorithms built in SeaDAS, named OC2, OC3, and OC4, to carry out chlorophyll-a concentration inversion in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea. We validate the inversion results using in-situ measured chlorophyll-a concentration data collected from the Yellow Sea and East China Sea in 2003. The results show that the inversion results of OC3 and OC4 algorithm are significantly larger than in-situ measured values, and the results of the OC2 algorithm are closer to the measured values. In view of the shortcomings of these algorithms, we proposes a chlorophyll-a concentration inversion model based on ridge regression, and carry out chlorophyll-a concentration inversion test using MODIS images covering the Yellow Sea and East China Sea 2003. The results indicate that, the new inversion model can effectively overcome the deficiencies of OC2, OC3, and OC4 algorithms. The inversion model can effectively overcome the covariance problem of OC2, OC3 and OC4 algorithms on the multivariate linear regression model, and the model passed the F-test (F=25.893, p=0.000<0.05), the mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) between the inversion values and the in-situ measured values was 21.8%, the root mean squared error (RMSE) was 0.325, and the coefficient of determination (R²) was 0.847. The accuracy and the fit degree of the new model were significantly better than those of the OC2, OC3 and OC4 algorithms. Therefore, the chlorophyll-a concentration inversion model based on ridge regression can effectively invert the chlorophyll-a concentration in the offshore.