Study of Area Variations in Arvand River Plume Using Satellite Images

Today, proper monitoring of coastal waters is important because these areas are important natural ecosystems. In addition, the assessment of water quality in rivers is vital. Given that traditional sampling methods are expensive and time consuming, remote sensing techniques is an effective tool for detecting and monitoring Plume. By identifying the river plume, we can estimate and guess the discharge. In this paper, by using Landsat 8 satellite imagery, the plume of the Arvand River has been detected in the seasons of spring (May), autumn (October) and winter (March) of 2017. For this detection algorithm consists of Radiance Band 4, Radiance Band 2, NDWI and the salinity is designed. For the verification of the Plume Detection Algorithm, Sentinel 2 satellite imagery was used at the same day. Plume area is also calculated in these three seasons. The results show that the plume area of Arvand River in winter, autumn and spring is 88.132 square kilometers, 85.952 square kilometers and 80.436 square kilometers respectively. Thus, using the Plume area detected through satellite imagery and surface velocity, river discharge can be estimated.