Abstract:
Released by the Remote Sensing Team (part of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration), these detailed maps released in February
2003 focus on the Northwest Hawaiian Islands.
The Remote Sensing Team led development of the first benthic habitat
maps made for the Northwest Hawaiian Islands. The NWHI chain extends
across 2200 km of open ocean,
... and the total shallow water area of the
ten atolls encompasses over 8,000 square km. Due to the remoteness
and large spatial extent of these reefs, high-resolution satellite
imagery was the primary source of data for this effort. Field data
collected during a NOS cruise to NWHI in Aug-Sep 2001 and provided by
the NMFS, Honolulu Lab were also essential to map production. The
satellite data used was IKONOS multispectral
(blue/green/red/near-infrared bands) and panchromatic imagery from
Space Imaging, collected between 2000 and 2002.
Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) imagery was also
obtained for all ten atolls as well as for most of the bank areas.
Map products for NWHI include georeferenced true color images derived
from IKONOS satellite data, estimated bathymetry (in meters) derived
from the imagery, benthic habitat cover, and detailed benthic habitat
classes. The process of map development is described in detail in the
NWHI_map_development.pdf
http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/ecosystems/coralreef/nwhi/pdf/NWHI_map_dev...
and a description of the classification scheme and classes can be
found in the NWHI_class_scheme.pdf
http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/ecosystems/coralreef/nwhi/pdf/NWHI_class_s.... A
PDF file with larger versions of the colorbars for the depth scales
and the legends for habitat cover and detailed class is also available
in the NWHI_map_legend.pdf
http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/ecosystems/coralreef/nwhi/pdf/NWHI_map_leg.... 
