Schweppe Seminar

Scattering, along with absorption, is one of the two most important optical properties of particles. Specifically, the angular variation of scattering, known as the volume scattering function (VSF) in the field of ocean optics, not only directly influences the light field but also contains valuable information about the particles responsible for the scattering. Historically, the VSFs of aquatic environments have been rarely measured, primarily due to limitations in instrumentation. Overcoming these challenges, my group, in collaboration with scientists and researchers from the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and various academic institutions, has spent the past 15 years quantifying the VSFs of aquatic particles in both laboratory and field settings worldwide, including lakes, estuaries, coastal areas, and open oceans. These efforts have not only enhanced our understanding of the natural variability of angular scattering but have also opened up new applications utilizing multi-angle observations, either from remote sensing platforms or in-field studies, as optical and biogeochemical tools for characterizing light fields and particles.