USGS Thermal Tower Reef Camera Timestack, Papaloloa, Ofu, American Samoa

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Frequently anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
USGS Thermal Tower Reef Camera Timestack, Papaloloa, Ofu, American Samoa
Abstract:
A digital thermal camera was installed at Papaloloa reef on Ofu, American Samoa and faced west along the beach. Every minute from February 3, 2020, to August 1, 2020, the camera collected raw radiometric snapshot images. The camera is part of a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) research project to study the effects of temperature on coral reef health. USGS researchers analyzed the timestack imagery collected from this camera to remotely sense information such as submarine groundwater discharge and temperature residence times. This camera is part of the USGS Coral Reef Project under the Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program (CMHRP). To learn more about this specific project visit: https://www.usgs.gov/programs/cmhrp/science/anthropogenic-nutrient-loading-and-coral-health-ofu-american-samoa
Supplemental_Information:
Additional information about the field activity or activities from which these data were derived is available online at:
https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/services/activity.php?fan=2020-620-FA
Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
The bounding coordinates below represent the limits of the rectified images from the thermal camera that covers the entirety of the in-focus field of view of the coral reef. This dataset represents the timestack images (in TIFF format) collected from the Optris PI640 90 degree x 66 degree field of view camera. This dataset is not rectified
  1. How might this data set be cited?
    Oberle, Ferdinand K.J., Nowacki, Daniel J., Marcuson, Rachel K., Johnson, Cordell, Storlazzi, Curt D., Logan, Joshua, and Cheriton, Olivia, 20250303, USGS Thermal Tower Reef Camera Timestack, Papaloloa, Ofu, American Samoa: data release DOI:10.5066/P19NRBZS, U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Santa Cruz, California.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    Suggested Citation: Oberle, F.K., Nowacki, D.J., Marcuson, R.K., Johnson, C., Storlazzi, C.D., Logan, J.B., and Cheriton, O.M., 2025, USGS Thermal Tower Reef Camera Timestack, Papaloloa, Ofu, American Samoa: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P19NRBZS.
  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -169.666752
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -169.664986
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: -14.184401
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: -14.185927
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
    Beginning_Date: 03-Feb-2020
    Ending_Date: 01-Aug-2020
    Currentness_Reference:
    ground condition
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: TIFF
  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?
      This is a Raster data set. It contains the following raster data types:
      • Dimensions, type Pixel
    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?
      Grid_Coordinate_System_Name: Universal Transverse Mercator
      Universal_Transverse_Mercator:
      UTM_Zone_Number: 2
      Transverse_Mercator:
      Scale_Factor_at_Central_Meridian: 0.9996
      Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -171
      Latitude_of_Projection_Origin: 0.0
      False_Easting: 500000.0
      False_Northing: 10000000
      Planar coordinates are encoded using row and column
      Abscissae (x-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 1
      Ordinates (y-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 1
      Planar coordinates are specified in meters
      The horizontal datum used is NAD83 (National Spatial Reference System 2011) (EPSG:6318).
      The ellipsoid used is GRS 1980 (EPSG:7019).
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.0.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257222101.
      Vertical_Coordinate_System_Definition:
      Altitude_System_Definition:
      Altitude_Datum_Name: American Samoa Vertical Datum of 2002 (ASVD02)
      Altitude_Resolution: 0.001
      Altitude_Distance_Units: meters
      Altitude_Encoding_Method: Attribute values
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
    Ofu_Papaloloa.Time_zone_SST.YYYY-MM-DD_HH-MM-SS.tif
    single band thermal image (Source: Producer Defined)
    Value
    Unique numeric values contained in each raster cell. (Source: Producer Defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0
    Maximum:255
    Units:temperature (relative)
    Resolution:0.4
    Entity_and_Attribute_Overview: A zip file containing 259,064 8-bit TIFF files
    Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation: U.S. Geological Survey

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
    • Ferdinand K.J. Oberle
    • Daniel J. Nowacki
    • Rachel K. Marcuson
    • Cordell Johnson
    • Curt D. Storlazzi
    • Joshua Logan
    • Olivia Cheriton
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
    U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
    Attn: PCMSC Science Data Coordinator
    2885 Mission Street
    Santa Cruz, CA

    831-427-4747 (voice)
    pcmsc_data@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

Data were obtained to document changes in surface temperatures over a coral reef. These data are intended for science researchers, students, policy makers, and the public. These data can be further processed to calculate temperature and submarine groundwater discharge. To ensure that USGS CMHRP data management protocols were followed, USGS Field Activity Number was assigned (FAN) for this camera imagery collection: 2020-620-FA.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
    Date: 01-Aug-2020 (process 1 of 4)
    Thermal camera model: The camera was a Optris IP 640. This model is temperature calibrated and sensitive to longwave infrared radiation (7-13.5 micron), using an uncooled microbolometer. The sensor size is 640x480 pixels. We used the high temperature range of -20-100 degrees C. The camera was employed with a wide-angle lens configuration (90-degree horizontal field of view). The camera was placed in a Optris Outdoor protective housing with a Germanium window. The camera was powered by batteries and solar panels and recorded the data locally to a rugged ultra compact fanless PC-computer. The camera was programmed to collect radiometric TIFF images with a spectral range of 7.5 to 13 micrometers at 1/60 Hertz (Hz) indefinitely. Person who carried out this activity:
    Ferdinand Oberle
    U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
    2885 Mission Street
    Santa Cruz, CA
    USA

    831-460-7589 (voice)
    foberle@usgs.gov
    Date: 2020 (process 2 of 4)
    The Thermal Camera (Optris Ip 640 90 degrees x 64 degrees) was mounted on a tower at 1262 cm height above local mean sea level, as defined by the American Samoa Vertical Datum of 2002. The tower was positioned at Latitude -14.18447566, Longitude-169.66628747. The thermal camera was looking out over the reef at an approximate viewing azimuth of 156 degrees southeast, with a 90 degree horizontal field of view. The tower ground position was determined using post-processed kinematic (PPK) data collected in field. Person who carried out this activity:
    Ferdinand Oberle
    U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
    2885 Mission Street
    Santa Cruz, CA
    US

    8314607589 (voice)
    foberle@usgs.gov
    Date: 2024 (process 3 of 4)
    The images included in this data release were collected from February 3, 2020, to August 1, 2020. Gaps exist in the dataset because of camera malfunctions. Additionally, some images may have been obscured by water droplets, insects, birds, salt, plant debris or sun glare, and thus may not reflect the true state of the ocean. A total of 259064 Image files (*.tiff) are included in this release and can be viewed and downloaded on the data release webpage. The files are zipped and must be unzipped to access the date-based folder structure. The TIFF files were named using the following convention, with 4 separate elements: 1) nickname of the location of the image 2) time zone indication for Samoa Standard Time (SST) 3) date and time in the following order year (YYYY), month (MM), day (DD), hour (HH), minute (MM), second (SS) and 4) the file format definition .tiff. An example of a filename formatted in this way would be Ofu_Papaloloa.Time_zone_SST.2020-03-18_14-42-51.tiff Person who carried out this activity:
    Ferdinand Oberle
    U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
    Research Oceanographer
    2885 Mission Street
    Santa Cruz, CA
    USA

    8314607589 (voice)
    foberle@usgs.gov
    Date: 2024 (process 4 of 4)
    Original images were a proprietary format 2-page TIFF with the first page being a 3-band 24-bit (RGB) image containing identical information in all three bands, and the second page being a 4-band 32-bit image (RGBa) containing all zeros in the R band, all 255 in the a (alpha) band, and 16-bit temperature data in an undocumented proprietary format in the G and B bands. For this publication, only a single band from the first page of the TIFF was published. The single band was extracted from the first band (Red) of the first page [0] of the original images using imagemagick version 7.1.1-36 Q16-HDRI x86_64 and the following command nested in a for loop in a bash shell: for files in /path-to-source/*.tiff; do magick $files[0] -channel R -separate -compress LZW /<path-to-destination>/$(basename "$files"); done
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?
    Bruder, Brittany L., and Brodie, Katherine L., 2020, CIRN Quantitative Coastal Imaging Toolbox.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    Bruder, B.L., and Brodie, K.L., 2020, CIRN Quantitative Coastal Imaging Toolbox: SoftwareX, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.softx.2020.100582.

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?
    The video camera collected 0.3-megapixel images, with file sizes generally between 0.14 and 0.59 megabytes (MB) on disc. Some images may have been obscured by water droplets, insects, birds, salt, plant debris or sun glare. This product is considered complete for the information presented, as described in the abstract. Users are advised to read the rest of the metadata record carefully for additional details.
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
    The post-processed kinematic (PPK) data collected in field activity 2020-620-FA were used to validate the extrinsic camera calibration using corrections referenced to a temporary base station located approximately 250 meters from the study area. The reference position of the base station was established using the mean position of four static occupations (each lasting between three and five hours, conducted during two days of surveying) derived using Precise Point Positioning (PPP). The standard deviation of the horizontal coordinates derived for the base station was 0.025 meters. The mean reported horizontal precision of the rover measurements was 0.015 meters (with a standard deviation of 0.010 meters). The magnitude of additional errors resulting from uncertainty in the base station reference position, errors in tripod centering, and antenna height measurement errors are unknown. The precise locations of the targets are used in the CIRN Quantitative Coastal Imaging Toolbox steps B and C (Bruder and Brodie, 2020). Horizontal coordinates are referenced to the North American Datum of 1983 (National Spatial Reference System 2011) Universal Transverse Mercator Zone 2 South (NAD83(PA11)/UTM Zone 2S) coordinate system, with a resolution of 0.001 meters.
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
    The PPK data collected in field activity 2020-620-FA were used to validate the extrinsic camera calibration using corrections referenced to a temporary base station located approximately 250 meters from the study area. The reference position of the base station was established using the mean position of four static occupations (each lasting between three and five hours, conducted during two days of surveying) derived using Precise Point Positioning (PPP). The standard deviation of the vertical coordinates derived for the base station was 0.031 meters. The mean reported horizontal precision of the rover measurements was 0.039 meters (with a standard deviation of 0.010 meters). The magnitude of additional errors resulting from uncertainty in the base station reference position, errors in tripod centering, and antenna height measurement errors are unknown. The precise locations of the targets are used in the CIRN Quantitative Coastal Imaging Toolbox steps B and C (Bruder and Brodie, 2020). Vertical positions are referenced to the American Samoa Datum of 2002 (ASVD02), derived using GEOID12B with a resolution of 0.001 meters.
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
    The imagery represents a fixed location at Papaloloa Point, Ofu, American Samoa. Images may not be available every minute of operation due to camera malfunction. Some images may have been obscured by water droplets, insects, birds, salt, plant debris or sun glare. This product is considered complete for the information presented, as described in the abstract. Users are advised to read the rest of the metadata record carefully for additional details.
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
    The camera system installed (Optris PI640) was programmed to collect 24-bit gray scale images at an interval of 1 minute. The published data are only a single grayscale band (8-bit)

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?
Access_Constraints No access constraints
Use_Constraints Public domain data from the U.S. Government are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. Please recognize the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) as the source of this information.
  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
    U.S. Geological Survey - ScienceBase
    Denver Federal Center, Building 810, Mail Stop 302
    Denver, CO

    1-888-275-8747 (voice)
    sciencebase@usgs.gov
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set? These data are presented in a zipped file accompanied by CSDGM FGDC-compliant metadata. Thermal camera single bad grayscale (8-bit) data (OfuFeb3toAug2020_single_band.zip) are provided.
  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
    Unless otherwise stated, all data, metadata and related materials are considered to satisfy the quality standards relative to the purpose for which the data were collected. Although these data and associated metadata have been reviewed for accuracy and completeness and approved for release by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the display or utility of the data on any other system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty.
  4. How can I download or order the data?
    • Availability in digital form:
      Data format: TIFF (version 4.3) Data files contain timsetack imagery; Size: 23750
      Network links: https://doi.org/10.5066/P19NRBZS
    • Cost to order the data: None

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 03-Mar-2025
Metadata author:
U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
Attn: PCMSC Science Data Coordinator
2885 Mission Street
Santa Cruz, CA

831-427-4747 (voice)
pcmsc_data@usgs.gov
Metadata standard:
Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
This page is <https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/catalog/pcmsc/DataReleases/ScienceBase/DR_P19NRBZS/OfuFeb3toAug2020_single_band_metadata.faq.html>
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