Interrelationships between Light and Phytoplankton in the Sea

Light energy penetrating the sea is diminished almost exponentially with depth with an accompanying drastic change in the energy spectrum as the result of absorption by various components in the seawater. Such a change in the light environment will affect phytoplankton life directly. Accordingly, in the study of light in the sea, much attention has been drawn toward the contribution of phytoplankton to the light field and also how much energy or which parts of the light spectrum are utilized at various depths by phytoplankton. Spectral distribution of underwater irradiance is determined by the processes of absorption and scattering from various components of the seawater. Since absorption plays a much more important role in spectral variation than scattering (Preisendorfer, 1961), the spectral absorption of each component should be studied in order to adequately interpret the variation of spectral irradiance in the sea. The materials absorbing light are phytoplankton, other particles, dissolved organic substances, and the water itself. Spectral characteristics of the light environment in the sea are determined by the variable ratios of these components. Several authors have attempted to measure directly the spectral absorption of individual components in seawater (Kirk, 1980; Okami et al., 1982; Kishino et al., 1984; Carder and Steward, 1985; Weidemann and Bannister, 1986). However, the determination of the absorption coefficient of natural phytoplankton is quite difficult, because no suitable technique is available for the direct measurement of absorption. Accordingly, there is still considerable uncertainty about light absorption by phytoplankton under natural conditions. Phytoplankton photosynthetic efficiency is important for the algae as well as the other organisms in the same ecosystem. Photosynthetic efficiency can be estimated fundamentally from quantum yield, which is obtained by measuring three parameters: photosynthetic rate, spectral downward irradiance, and the spectral absorption coefficient of phytoplankton. The optical system of a recently designed spectral irradiance meter is shown in Fig. 4-1. The meter has two independent cosine collectors that receive downward and upward spectral irradiance, respectively, by rotation of the mirror placed behind the collectors. After collimation, light reflected by the mirror is separated by a beam splitter.