Abstract:
Measurements of total irradiance versus depth and beam transmission versus depth were made at
stations near shore along the west coast of the North and South American continents. The water types at
each station were optically classified according to the system of Jerlov (1976), thus providing additional
information for the description of the distribution of the world's ocean water types. In addition, the
parameter k/c, where k is the irradiance attenuation coefficient and c is the beam attenuation coefficient,
has been shown to be a useful parameter for determining the relative particle concentrations of ocean
water.
