IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON THE SEA SURFACE TEMPERATURE OF DAKHLA BAYMOROCCO

The Sea Surface Temperatures (SST) in Dakhla Bay are a critical modulator of the city's climate and an essential contributor to the health of the marine ecological system. Currently, the increase in atmospheric temperature and the sea surface is one of the significant consequences of this climate change. This work aims to study climate change's impact on the bay's temperature of Dakhla_ Morocco. In this context, our research focuses on the evaluation of SST data using thermal infrared (TIR) band and MODIS ocean colour bands over 17 years from 2002 to 2018. We also use climate data to assess the correlation between the SST and atmospheric parameters (precipitation, atmospheric temperature). The cartography results have shown an apparent spatial heterogeneity in the annual extreme hot SST throughout 2002-2018 in the Dakhla Bay. Moreover, these results indicate that SST grew by almost 2.34 °C, which may be explained by seasonal rhythm and tidal dynamics. Based on annual data, the results indicate that SST is affected positively by the atmospheric parameters (precipitation and temperature). The correlation coefficient calculated between SST- Temperature and SST- Precipitation respectively is 0.95 and 0.90. The result obtained from this study is significant linear warming with an increase of 0.14 °C of the SST produces heating of 0.20 °C. The effect of the heating of the Bay's surface water leads to a lower concentration of minerals and nutrients and reduces the biological richness of the seas.