High Resolution Sentinel-2 Images for Improved Bathymetric Mapping of Coastal and Lake Environments

Bathymetry of nearshore coastal environments and lakes are constantly reworking because of the change in the patterns of energy dispersal and related sediment transport pathways. Therefore, updated and accurate bathymetric models are a crucial component in providing basic information for scientific, managerial, and geographical studies. Recent advances in satellite technology have revolutionized the acquisition of bathymetric profiles, offering new vistas in mapping. This contribution analysed the suitability of high resolution Sentinel-2 images for bathymetric mapping of coastal and lake environments. The bathymetric algorithm for satellite imageries was developed based on the available high resolution bathymetric data for Mobile Bay, Tampa Bay and Lake Huron regions obtained from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC). The results demonstrate that the satellite derived bathymetry is efficient for retrieving depths up to 10 m for coastal regions and up to 30 m for lake environment. The root mean square error (RMSE) varies between 1.99 m and 2.80 m for the three regions. A comparison of Sentinel-2 derived bathymetry is also carried with the Landsat 8 OLI derived bathymetry. The results suggest Sentinel-2 images are capable of producing much accurate bathymetric maps than those from the Landsat 8 OLI images. Our work demonstrated that the freely available Sentinel-2 imagery proved to be a reliable method for acquiring updated high resolution bathymetric information for large areas in short span of time.