Shape of particle backscattering in the North Pacific Ocean: the χ factor.

Volume scattering functions were measured using two instruments in waters near the Ocean Station Papa (50°N 145°W) and show consistency in estimating the factor attributable to particles (). While in the study area exhibits a limited variability, it could vary significantly when compared with data obtained in various parts of the global oceans. The global comparison also confirms that the minimal variation of is at scattering angles near 120°. With an uncertainty of <10, can be assumed as spectrally independent. For backscatter sensors with wide field of view (FOV), the averaging of scattering within the FOV reduces the values of needed to compute the backscattering coefficient by up to 20% at angles <130.