A survey of visual impairment and blindness in children attending eight schools for the blind in Myanmar: An update.

Purpose: To determine the causes of visual impairment (VI) and blindness among children in schools for the blind in Myanmar; to identify the avoidable causes of VI and blindness; to provide spectacles, low-vision aids, and ophthalmic treatment where indicated; to provide an update of the 2007 survey performed and identify any major epidemiological changes. Methods: Two hundred and ninety children under 16 years of age from all eight schools for the blind in Myanmar were examined and the data entered into the World Health Organization Prevention of Blindness Examination Record for Childhood Blindness. Results: In total, 271 children (93.4%) were blind (visual acuity [VA] <3/60 in the better eye) and 15 (5.17%) had severe visual impairment (SVI = VA <6/60 to 3/60 in the better eye). Most children had whole globe as the major anatomical site of SVI or blindness (105, 36.6%). The cause was unknown in the majority of these (155, 54.0%). One hundred and twelve children had avoidable causes of blindness and SVI (39.0%). Forty children (13.9%) required an optical device and 10.1% required surgical or medical attention, with a potential for visual improvement through intervention in 3.48%. Conclusion: In all, 39.0% of children had potentially avoidable causes of SVI and blindness with cataracts and measles being the commonest causes. This follow-up survey performed after the first one completed in Myanmar in 2007 demonstrates a change in the major site of abnormality from the cornea to whole globe and a reduction in avoidable blindness but highlights the ongoing burden of measles.

Radiometric calibration of ocean color satellite sensors using AERONET-OC data.

Radiometric vicarious calibration of ocean color (OC) satellite sensors is carried out through the full sunlight path radiative transfer (RT) simulations of the coupled ocean-atmosphere system based on the aerosol and water-leaving radiance data from AERONET-OC sites for the visible and near-infrared (NIR) bands. Quantitative evaluation of the potential of such approach for achieving the radiometric accuracies of OC satellite sensors is made by means of direct comparisons between simulated and satellite measured top of atmosphere (TOA) radiances. Very high correlations (R ≥ 0.96 for all visible channels) are achieved for the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) sensor when this approach is applied with the data from the LISCO and WaveCIS AERONET-OC sites. Vicarious calibration gain factors derived with this approach are highly consistent, with comparisons between the two sites exhibiting around 0.5% discrepancy in the blue and green parts of the spectrum, while their average temporal variability is also within 0.28% - 1.23% permitting the approach to be used, at this stage, for verification of sensor calibration performance.

Assessment of a bidirectional reflectance distribution correction of above-water and satellite water-leaving radiance in coastal waters.

Water-leaving radiances, retrieved from in situ or satellite measurements, need to be corrected for the bidirectional properties of the measured light in order to standardize the data and make them comparable with each other. The current operational algorithm for the correction of bidirectional effects from the satellite ocean color data is optimized for typical oceanic waters. However, versions of bidirectional reflectance correction algorithms specifically tuned for typical coastal waters and other case 2 conditions are particularly needed to improve the overall quality of those data. In order to analyze the bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) of case 2 waters, a dataset of typical remote sensing reflectances was generated through radiative transfer simulations for a large range of viewing and illumination geometries. Based on this simulated dataset, a case 2 water focused remote sensing reflectance model is proposed to correct above-water and satellite water-leaving radiance data for bidirectional effects. The proposed model is first validated with a one year time series of in situ above-water measurements acquired by collocated multispectral and hyperspectral radiometers, which have different viewing geometries installed at the Long Island Sound Coastal Observatory (LISCO). Match-ups and intercomparisons performed on these concurrent measurements show that the proposed algorithm outperforms the algorithm currently in use at all wavelengths, with average improvement of 2.4% over the spectral range. LISCO's time series data have also been used to evaluate improvements in match-up comparisons of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer satellite data when the proposed BRDF correction is used in lieu of the current algorithm. It is shown that the discrepancies between coincident in-situ sea-based and satellite data decreased by 3.15% with the use of the proposed algorithm. This confirms the advantages of the proposed model over the current one, demonstrating the need for a specific case 2 water BRDF correction algorithm as well as the feasibility of enhancing performance of current and future satellite ocean color remote sensing missions for monitoring of typical coastal waters.

Long Island Sound Coastal Observatory: assessment of above-water radiometric measurement uncertainties using collocated multi and hyperspectral systems.

The Long Island Sound Coastal Observational platform (LISCO) near Northport, New York, has been recently established to support validation of ocean color radiometry (OCR) satellite data. LISCO is equipped with collocated multispectral, SeaPRISM, and hyperspectral, HyperSAS, above-water systems for OCR measurements. This combination offers the potential for improving validation activities of current and future OCR satellite missions, as well as for satellite intercomparisons and spectral characterization of coastal waters. Results of measurements made by both the multi and hyperspectral instruments, in operation since October 2009, are presented, evaluated and their associated uncertainties quantified based on observations for a period of over a year. Multi- and hyperspectral data processing as well as the data quality analysis are described and their uncertainties evaluated. The quantified intrinsic uncertainties of HyperSAS data exhibit satisfactory values, less than 5% over a large spectral range, from 340 to 740 nm, and over a large range of diurnal daylight conditions, depending on the maximum sun elevation at the solar noon. Intercomparisons between HyperSAS and SeaPRISM data revealed that an overcorrection of the sun glint effect in the current SeaPRISM processing induces errors, which are amplified through the whole data processing, especially at the shorter wavelengths. The spectral-averaged uncertainties can be decomposed as follows: (i) sun glint removal generates 2% uncertainty, (ii) sky glint removal generates strong uncertainties of the order of 15% mainly induced by sun glint overcorrection, (iii) viewing angle dependence corrections improve the data intercomparison by reducing the dispersion by 2%, (iv) normalization of atmospheric effects generates approximately 4% uncertainty. Based on this study, improvements of the sun glint correction are expected to significantly reduce the uncertainty associated with the data processing down to the level of 1%. On the other hand, strong correlations between both datasets (R(2)>0.96) demonstrate the efficacy of the above-water retrieval concept and confirm that the collocated instrumentation constitutes an important aid to above-water data quality analysis, which makes LISCO a key element of the AERONET-OC network.