Assessing Novel Near-Coastal Ecosystem Dynamics With Satellite Observation: Case Studies in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea

Integrated Earth Observations can help to assess ecosystem dynamics in coastal and marine environments. Examples of combined optical, infrared and microwave remote sensing are provided by near-coastal case studies on the eastern Mediterranean Sea. The data show that the river Nile plume, much reduced by the Aswan High Dam, still provides substantial water constituents along the southern coastline. To the east, the Israeli-Lebanese-Syrian coast is a major hotspots for anomalous algal blooming driven by coastal plumes extending offshore. In the northern area, atmospheric forcing is the main factor driving the cyclonic Rhodes (surface divergence with upwelling of cold, nutrient-rich waters, and sustains algal blooming) and the anticyclonic Ierapetra Gyre (surface convergence with accretion and downwelling of warm, nutrient-poor waters).