Polarized radiance fields under a dynamic ocean surface: a three-dimensional radiative transfer solution.

The hybrid matrix operator, Monte Carlo (HMOMC) method previously reported [Appl. Opt.47, 1063-1071 (2008)] is improved by neglecting higher-order terms in the coupling of the matrix operators and by introducing a dual grid scheme. The computational efficiency for solving the vector radiative transfer equation in a full 3D coupled atmosphere-surface-ocean system is substantially improved, and, thus, large-scale simulations of the radiance distribution become feasible. The improved method is applied to the computation of the polarized radiance field under realistic surface waves simulated by the power spectral density method. To the authors' best knowledge, this is the first time that the polarized radiance field under a dynamic ocean surface and the underwater image of an object above such an ocean surface have been reported.