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| Research > Theoretical Studies |
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Theoretical Studies |
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CURTIS MOBLEY
Although my background is physics and meteorology, most of my career has been devoted to research in radiative transfer theory applied to problems in optical oceanography. The widely-used Hydrolight computer program and the textbook Light and Water: Radiative Transfer in Natural Waters are the best-known products of my efforts. I have a particular fondness for teaching, and I go to sea whenever they let me.
Early in my career, I was a Fulbright Fellow to Germany, and I have held both regular (at the NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Lab) and senior (at the Jet Propulsion Lab) National Research Council Resident Research Associateships. I was an oceanographer with the University of Washington Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and Ocean during the 1980s. From 1989-1991, I was the Program Manager of the Ocean Optics (now Environmental Optics) program at the Office of Naval Research. I have been an associate professor of physics at Pacific Lutheran University, and I am now an Affiliate Professor in the School of Oceanography at the University of Washington.
CURRENT RESEARCH
In addition to spending time on Hydrolight user support and developing the next version of Hydrolight, teaching, and applied work, I currently have two main research projects.
A Look-up-table Methodology for Interpretation of Hyperspectral Ocean Color Imagery (funded by the Office of Naval Research).
This work is investigating a new way of extracting environmental information such as bathymetry, bottom type, and water properties from hyperspectral remote-sensing reflectances. The initial application of the LUT methodology is now being made to shallow waters in the Bahamas, Florida keys, and coastal New Jersey and California waters using imagery from the PHILLS airborne system.
Modeling Coastal Ocean Optical Properties for Coupled Circulation and Ecosystem Models (funded by the Office of Naval Research)
This work began as part of the Hyperspectral Coastal Ocean Dynamics Experiment (HyCODE). The goal of this program is to understand the water-leaving radiance, which of course requires an understanding of the in-water radiance. I have developed an extremely fast version of Hydrolight for use as the optics component of coupled physical-biological-optical ecosystem models. Those coupled models are now being used in collaborative work with other investigators to understand extremely complex coastal ecosystems.
Other smaller projects (various funding sources)
I often have smaller or applied research projects funded by government agencies or private industry. Recently, these have included studies of underwater visibility of ship hulls, visibility of fish by predators, development of new radiative transfer inversion algorithms for interpretation of remotely sensed signatures, studies of the effects of shallow bottoms on upwelling radiances, and software development of various kinds.
PERSONAL
Starting in graduate school, my wife, Ann Kruse, and I devoted all weekends and vacations to climbing -- ice in New England in the winter, rock in California, mountaineering in Alaska, and everything in between. But after 20 years of playing on vertical terrain, all of the climbs started to feel the same. This serious mid-life crisis was resolved when we discovered sea kayaking. Our vacations usually find us paddling around the flooded canyons of Lake Powell, the islands of Puget Sound, or the fjords of New Zealand or Alaska. I also occasionally mountain and road bike, and I’ve done cross-state rides in Iowa and Utah.
I lead trips for Wilderness Volunteers, a non-profit organization that does trail maintenance, habitat restoration, archaeological surveys, and similar work in National Parks, wilderness areas, wildlife refuges, and other public lands. My wife and I both lead white water raft trips for the Sierra Club. You can read about our adventures on our personal web site.
Oh yea, I also have a nice stamp collection, and I am a pretty good gourmet cook and a mediocre landscape photographer. I like cats, but I’m allergic to them. When I retire, I’m going to get me a mangy old dog to help me find lizards and snakes on my desert wanderings.
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