SeaWiFS calibration and validation plan, volume 3

Technical Report · Tue Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 1992

OSTI ID:6940280

Hooker, S B; Firestone, E R; Mcclain, C R; Esaias, W E; Barnes, W; Guenther, B; Endres, D; Mitchell, B G; Barnes, R

The Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) will be the first ocean-color satellite since the Nimbus-7 Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS), which ceased operation in 1986. Unlike the CZCS, which was designed as a proof-of-concept experiment, SeaWiFS will provide routine global coverage every 2 days and is designed to provide estimates of photosynthetic concentrations of sufficient accuracy for use in quantitative studies of the ocean's primary productivity and biogeochemistry. A review of the CZCS mission is included that describes that data set's limitations and provides justification for a comprehensive SeaWiFS calibration and validation program. To accomplish the SeaWiFS scientific objectives, the sensor's calibration must be constantly monitored, and robust atmospheric corrections and bio-optical algorithms must be developed. The plan incorporates a multi-faceted approach to sensor calibration using a combination of vicarious (based on in situ observations) and onboard calibration techniques. Because of budget constraints and the limited availability of ship resources, the development of the operational algorithms (atmospheric and bio-optical) will rely heavily on collaborations with the Earth Observing System (EOS), the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) oceans team, and projects sponsored by other agencies, e.g., the U.S. Navy and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Other elements of the plan include the routine quality control of input ancillary data (e.g., surface wind, surface pressure, ozone concentration, etc.) used in the processing and verification of the level-0 (raw) data to level-1 (calibrated radiances), level-2 (derived products), and level-3 (gridded and averaged derived data) products.

• Research Organization: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Greenbelt, MD (United States). Goddard Space Flight Center
• OSTI ID: 6940280
• Report Number(s): N-92-33737; NASA-TM-104566-VOL-3; NAS-1.15:104566-VOL-3; REPT-92B00117
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
29 ENERGY PLANNING
POLICY AND ECONOMY
OZONE
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
SATELLITES
ACCURACY
SEAS
BIOGEOCHEMISTRY
ALGORITHMS
CALIBRATION
OCEANOGRAPHY
PHOTOSYNTHESIS
QUALITY CONTROL
REMOTE SENSING
SPECTROMETERS
WIND
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CHEMISTRY
CONTROL
GEOCHEMISTRY
MATHEMATICAL LOGIC
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
PHOTOCHEMICAL REACTIONS
SURFACE WATERS
SYNTHESIS
540310* - Environment
Aquatic- Basic Studies- (1990-)
540120 - Environment
Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
290301 - Energy Planning & Policy- Environment
Health
& Safety- Regional & Global Environmental Aspects- (1992-)