Chuanmin Hu
Associate Professor
Optical Oceanography
Ph.D., University of Miami, Physics Dept., 1997
Office Phone: (727) 553-3987
Email: huc@usf.edu
CV: View PDF
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Research Interests
Nearly all marine life depends on light. My research is focused on addressing coastal ocean problems using primarily optics. These problems include river-ocean interactions (transport and transform of particulate and dissolved matters), carbon cycling, algal blooms, coral reef environmental health and ecosystem connectivity, climate change and anthropogenic influence on coastal/estuarine water quality. As light exists both below and above the surface of the ocean, I approach these problems through 1) characterizing the underwater light field using the state-of-the-art optical equipment; 2) developing satellite remote sensing algorithms and data products specifically targeted to these problems; and 3) integrating these products with other data to understand coastal ocean changes in bio-optical properties as well as their causes and consequences. My current research emphasizes the use of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to better understand the 3-dimensional light field and algal bloom formation, and high-resolution satellite remote sensing from which customized data products are derived for estuaries, turbid coastal waters, and optically shallow waters (e.g., coral reefs, seagrass).
Some Recent Publications
Hu, C., Z. Lee, and B. Franz (2012). Chlorophyll a algorithms for oligotrophic oceans: A novel approach based on three-band reflectance difference. J. Geophys. Res., 117, C01011, doi:10.1029/2011JC007395.
Hu, C., R. H. Weisberg, Y. Liu, L. Zheng, K. Daly, D. English, J. Zhao, and G. Vargo (2011). Did the northeastern Gulf of Mexico become greener after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill? Geophys. Res. Lett. 38, L09601, doi:10.1029/2011GL047184.
Hu, C., J. Cannizzaro, K. L.Carder, F. E. Muller-Karger, and R. Hardy (2010). Remote detection of Trichodesmium blooms in optically complex coastal waters: Examples with MODIS full-spectral data. Remote Sens. Environ., 114:2048-2058.
Hu, C., D. Li, C. Chen, J. Ge, F. E. Muller-Karger, J. Liu, F. Yu, and M-X He (2010). On the recurrent Ulva prolifera blooms in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea. J. Geophys. Res. 115, C05017, doi:10.1029/2009JC005561.
Hu, C. (2009). A novel ocean color index to detect floating algae in the global oceans. Remote Sens. Environ. 113 :2118 :2129.
Hu, C., X. Li, W. G. Pichel, and F. E. Muller-Karger (2009). Detection of natural oil slicks in the NW Gulf of Mexico using MODIS imagery. Geophys. Res. Lett. Vol. 36, L01604, doi:10.1029/2008GL036119.
Gower, J., C. Hu, G. Borstad, and S. King (2006). Ocean color satellites show extensive lines of floating Sargassum in the Gulf of Mexico. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 44:3619-3625.
Hu, C., F. E. Muller-Karger, and P. W. Swarzenski (2006). Hurricanes, submarine groundwater discharge, and Florida's red tides. Geophysical Research Letters. Vol. 33, L11601, doi:10.1029/2005GL025449.
Hu, C., J. Nelson, E. Johns, Z. Chen, R. Weisberg, and F. E. Muller-Karger (2005). Mississippi River water in the Florida Straits and in the Gulf Stream off Georgia in summer 2004. Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, L14606, doi:10.1029/2005GL022942.
