Temporal and spatial distribution of Kd(490) and its response to precipitation and wind in lake Hongze based on MODIS data

•A Kd(490) estimation algorithm was developed based on MODIS/Aqua image in Lake Hongze.•The spatiotemporal patterns of Kd(490) were mapped from 2002 to 2016 in Lake Hongze.•The affection of the optical properties, the concentration of water constituents and their PSD characteristics on Kd(490) were discussed.•The response of Kd(490) spatiotemporal patterns on precipitation and wind speed were discussed from the annual and inter-annual scales. The diffuse attenuation coefficient Kd(λ) is an important optical parameter that can be determined remotely. It plays a meaningful role in inland and coastal biogeochemical processes and aids in determining water quality. Four data-gathering expeditions were conducted in Lake Hongze (HZL), China, between 2015 and 2017. Based on the in situ optical and biological data, we constructed and evaluated a band ratio model for retrieving Kd(490) of HZL from MODIS/Aqua images between 2002 and 2016. Our results are as follows: (1) The developed algorithm, using the visible bands (Rrs(red)/Rrs(green)), performs robustly for Kd(490) estimation, with R2 of 0.82 and p