A dataset of remote sensing-based inherent optical properties of Hulun Lake from 2016 to 2020

Abstract

Hulun Lake, the largest steppe lake in the high latitude semi-arid region of inland China, holds great significance for grassland production and steppe-lake ecosystem. The absorption coefficient of water constitutes is indicative of the optically active components in water, thus conducive to estimating the optically active substances and other related bio-optical parameters of waters. In this study, we used the quasi-analytical algorithm (QAA), a QAA-750E absorption coefficient inversion algorithm suitable for inland waters. Based on Sentinel-3/OLCI remote sensing reflectance data, we produced a dataset of monthly mean phytoplankton absorption coefficient aph(675)and backscattering coefficient bbp(560) of Hulun Lake during 2016-2020. Validation analysis results show that the model-derived b_bp (560) has an R2 value of 0.59, RMSE of 0.55, and MRD of 0.54 (N = 15), indicating a high level of reliability of the dataset. The dataset is expected to offer data support for water quality monitoring and ecological environment protection of Hulun Lake.