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Detection of exogenous floating marine debris: an overview of techniques associated with remote sensing
Summary
This review surveyed remote sensing techniques for detecting floating marine debris including plastic litter, identifying current capabilities, limitations, and research gaps. The paper calls for development of a spectral reference library for marine debris to improve detection accuracy from satellite and aerial platforms.
Exogenous floating marine debris (EFMD) is a worldwide concern and its ubiquitous characteristics and long-term threat have raised calls for new venues to enable easier and prompt detection at large. The main focus of this paper is to evidence search and detection methods for EFMD using remote sensing techniques. This paper contributes to update research information in the topic under scrutiny and to screen for possible gaps to mitigate EFMD impacts. Several needs for research were found, and, before any work to establish the ground truth could take place, a spectral library model for EFMD going through several stages of biofouling must be created using passive or active research methods. Search methods need to be automated using empirical models based on stratified set-ups previously tested. Several sensors show potential for an indirect search for EFMD, but direct detection of EFMD using multispectral and radar instruments still needs further research through integration with conceptual and empirical modeling techniques.