Towards an autonomous turbidimeter network for multi-mission ocean colour satellite data validation activities

RUDDICK, K.; NECHAD, B.; DOGLIOTTI, A.I.; GOSSN, J.I

Simposio; 2016 ESA Living Planet Symposium; 2016

Satellite-based optical sensors such as MODIS/Aqua, Sentinel-2, Sentinel-3, Landsat-8, Pléiades, SABIA/Mar, PROBA-V, etc. can be used to map turbidity and suspended particulate matter in coastal, estuarine  and inland waters as support for water quality monitoring, sediment transport applications such as dredging and fisheries science. However, data quality is a critical problem and in situ data must be gathered from a wide range of test sites in order to provide validation for the diverse range of conditions that can be encountered  all  over  the  world. In this context, a network to validate satellite turbidity products called TURBINET is proposed with the goal to establish a long-term (autonomous) international network of collaboration and data-sharing. Joint measurements of turbidity, reflectance and in-water side/back-scattering have been performed in Belgium and Argentina in 2015. Instrument comparisons showed that comparable values could be retrieved using different sensors and field measurements were used to validate a Pléiades high resolution image (2m). The results presented in this work demonstrate the feasibility and usefulness of setting up a network to validate satellite turbidity products.