{"id":22808,"date":"2015-08-04T14:54:18","date_gmt":"2015-08-04T18:54:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/?p=22808"},"modified":"2021-11-10T16:40:39","modified_gmt":"2021-11-10T20:40:39","slug":"lake-tahoes-signature-blueness-comes-from-algae-not-clarity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fondriest.com\/news\/lake-tahoes-signature-blueness-comes-from-algae-not-clarity.htm","title":{"rendered":"Lake Tahoe’s Signature Blueness Comes From Algae, Not Clarity"},"content":{"rendered":"

If anyone knows the captivating power of Lake Tahoe firsthand, it\u2019s Geoffrey Schladow. <\/p>\n

For the past 11 years, he\u2019s led scientific work around the renowned lake as director of the University of California, Davis, Tahoe Environmental Research Center \u2014 but more than a decade of study hasn\u2019t diminished his sense of the lake\u2019s most compelling property. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think when people come to Tahoe and they drive over the pass and suddenly have their first view of the lake, what they see is its blueness,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Whether viewed in person or through a photograph, Lake Tahoe\u2019s deep cerulean hue can seem otherworldly. Perhaps it\u2019s fitting, then, that determining the mechanism behind that striking color took some help from an agency with plenty of experience working beyond this world. <\/p>\n

A study led by UC Davis postdoctoral researcher Shohei Watanabe used data from a NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory buoy to develop a blueness index for the lake and examine the roots of its color. The results of the study are published online in the TERC\u2019s State of the Lake Report 2015. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe State of the Lake Report is something we\u2019ve been doing for nine years,\u201d said Schladow, who\u2019s also a professor of water resources and environmental engineering at UC Davis. \u201cIt\u2019s a report on the almost half-century of ongoing monitoring and data collection that we do.\u201d<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s report found that Lake Tahoe\u2019s blueness is determined by algal concentrations in the lake, and that the lake is least blue when it exhibits the highest clarity \u2014 a finding that shatters preconceived notions about the relationship between both variables. <\/p>\n

\"The

The research buoy houses a hyperspectral instrument that stares down into the lake and measures light distribution and wavelength in very fine increments. (Credit: UC Davis)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThat really caught us by surprise,\u201d Schladow said. \u201cThe assumption that we had made \u2014 and just about everybody else \u2014 is that clarity and blueness were literally one in the same; that they covaried.\u201d <\/p>\n

The NASA research buoy that provided the data was designed to verify satellite observations over the lake. The buoy houses a specialized hyperspectral instrument that stares down into the lake and measures light distribution and wavelength in very fine increments. From these measurements, researchers can pinpoint the precise color of the water. <\/p>\n

Using the blueness index, Schladow said the TERC is keeping an eye on Lake Tahoe\u2019s color and how it changes across spans of time from throughout the day to throughout the year. Understanding the mechanism behind the lake\u2019s blueness should help researchers and managers better address its issues related to clarity (Under the Clean Water Act, Lake Tahoe is considered an impaired lake in regards to its clarity). <\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to do two things,\u201d Schladow said. \u201cWe have to control particles to improve clarity, but we also have to reduce nutrients in order to get the blueness to the level that we want.\u201d Nutrients are the primary factor determining algal concentrations in the lake, Schladow said.<\/p>\n

\"UC

UC Davis researcher Shohei Wantanabe gathers data from a NASA Jet Propulsion Lab research buoy. (Credit: UC Davis)<\/p><\/div>\n

Unlike in most watersheds, the Tahoe Basin doesn\u2019t feature agriculture, mining or forestry operations, so traditional nutrient inputs aren\u2019t much of a problem. In fact, it\u2019s the tourists drawn to Lake Tahoe\u2019s beauty that are likely the main source of nutrient deposition in the lake. In the summer, tourists and their motor vehicles swarm Tahoe for camping, hiking and water recreation, while skiing is a major draw in the winter.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the largest sources of nutrients \u2014 especially nitrogen \u2014 in the Tahoe Basin is atmospheric deposition,\u201d Schladow said. \u201cThere\u2019s always been a big concern here about trying to reduce atmospheric loading.\u201d The basin\u2019s natural morphology tends to trap particulate matter \u2014 including nitrogen-rich car exhaust \u2014 suspended above the lake, Schladow explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis study will be hopefully further impetus, or at least further reason, to continue with (nutrient reduction) efforts, to try to get people out of their cars and driving less in the basin,\u201d Schladow said. <\/p>\n

A variety of local, state and federal agencies are considering management options such as wetland construction to reduce nutrient loads in Lake Tahoe and improve its overall ecological health. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a difficult thing to measure with one or two parameters,\u201d Schladow said. \u201cBut clarity and blueness are certainly good indicators and they tell us when things are changing for the better and changing for the worse.\u201d <\/p>\n

Top image:\u00a0The research buoy houses a hyperspectral instrument that stares down into the lake and measures light distribution and wavelength in very fine increments. (Credit: UC Davis)<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Using data from a NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory buoy, UC Davis researchers find that Lake Tahoe’s captivating blueness comes from algae, not water clarity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":22801,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,32],"tags":[308,60,203,346,109,255],"class_list":["post-22808","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured-articles","category-lakes-reservoirs","tag-algae","tag-featured","tag-lake-tahoe","tag-lakes-reservoirs","tag-news-ticker","tag-university-of-california"],"remote_post_permalink":false,"remote_post_featured_image":false,"yoast_head":"\nLake Tahoe's Signature Blueness Comes From Algae, Not Clarity<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Using data from a NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory buoy, UC Davis researchers find that Lake Tahoe's captivating blueness comes from 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