Retrieving climate change dependent Sea Surface Temperature (SST) in Southern Turkey by using Landsat thermal imagery

Sea Surface Temperature (SST) is one of the most significant parameters in oceanography. SST data can be used to analyse the ocean and marine environments. SST is required to study Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), identification of invasive species spreading areas, climate change, sea-level rise and pollution predictions. For more than 30 years, satellites have provided images that can assist in understanding changes in marine ecosystems. Remote data can be used as a real-time instrument for creating SST datasets. In this study, Landsat thermal data is used to retrieve sea surface temperatures. The study area of the research includes 1025 points belonging to four cross-sections of Gökova Bay in Southern Turkey. SST values were retrieved using satellite measurements for the first time in Gökova Bay. Landsat 4-5 Thematic Mapper, Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus, and Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager/Thermal Infrared Sensor imagery were analysed, covering the period from 1987 to 2017. Using geographical information systems, the satellite images were processed with algorithms, and changes in sea surface temperature were evaluated in spatiotemporal terms. As a result, a temperature anomaly of about 3 °C above average was observed in 2011 and 2015. Climate change has been shown to cause fishing losses in Gökova Bay. A relationship was identified between invasive species entering Gökova Bay and sea surface temperature data. The study method has become a useful alternative method in cases where there is a lack of in-situ data.