Multiple scattering of laser light from a turbid medium

Through a controlled laboratory study, theoretical modeling was developed that accurately relates the reflectance of turbid water to the concentrations of suspended and dissolved materials; this modeling will be useful in quantitatively mapping pollutant concentrations in lakes and rivers through aerial photography. Laser light illuminated water containing both Teflon particles and black dye. Over a large range of concentrations of these scattering and absorbing materials, measured reflectance was successfully predicted by a multiple scattering analysis. (Single scatter analysis produced serious errors.) The theoretical development involved solving the radiative transport equation and accounted for correlated scattering from closely spaced particles.