Lake Colors: Interpreting Apparent Optical Properties

This section provides a synthesis of water color applications in aquatic science. It describes traditional sampling methods based on eyesight, which are becoming increasingly popular in citizen science, and in combination with smart phone applications. On the other end, we present radiometric measurements with advanced opto-electronic sensors that bear an increasing potential for remote sensing applications on ground- to space-based platforms. Both approaches’ complementarity in environmental monitoring are subject to ongoing research.