Assessment and analysis of the chlorophyll-a concentration variability over the Vietnamese coastal waters from the MERIS ocean color sensor (2002-2012)

Spatio-temporal patterns of the chlorophyll-a concentration, Chla, have been assessed from the MEdium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) over the whole Vietnamese coastal waters from 2002 to 2012. For that purpose, six bio-optical algorithms already documented and based on different approaches have been tested over a large in situ data set collected at different seasons and locations along the Vietnamese coast. The OC5 algorithm (Gohin, Druon, and Lampert, 2002) presents the best performances and has been selected to assess Chla in the studied region. The notion of optimal bio-optical environment associated with the best performance of OC5 has been introduced. For suspended particulate matter concentration, SPM, lower than 100 g·m− 3, and colored dissolved organic matter, acdom(443), lower than 0.5 m− 1, Chla is estimated with an uncertainty of 36% and a bias of 5%. A Chla climatology has been generated and the temporal patterns (seasonal variability, long term trend, and irregular component) have been described using the Census-X-11 time series decomposition method. Three-dimensional hydrodynamical numerical simulations have been used to analyze the spatio-temporal patterns of Chla. The seasonal contribution dominates the variance of the signal, in good relationship with the dynamic of the mixed layer depth as well as with the occurrence of a seasonal upwelling induced by the summer monsoon. The irregular variability of Chla which may reach up to 35% of the total variance in the central part of the Vietnamese coast, can be explained through the surface kinetic energy and its standard deviation which is associated with small scales processes. A long term monotonic trend from about 2 to > 5%·yr− 1 (that is 20 to > 50% from 2002 to 2012) have been noticed in different coastal areas where aquaculture activities exhibit a concurrence increase, ranging from 31% to 113% (in production weight) over the same time period. In situ measurements, and especially of nutrients, are however necessary to confirm the link between aquaculture activities and phytoplankton biomass long term evolutions.