WQRS_NZ

A dataset of 153 in situ Chl$a$ measurements with Sentinel-3 OLCI matchups from 11 lakes in the central North Island of New Zealand. The lakes are of volcanic and riverine origin and encompass a range of bio-geo-optical types. Trophic states range from clear oligotrophic e.g., Lake Taupo, to hypereutrophic e.g., Lake Waikare, with extremely high turbidity resulting from sediment resuspension and algal biomass. The situ measurements were made under water quality monitoring programmes run by the regional councils of Waikato and Bay of Plenty, using standard fluorometric and spectroscopic methods, respectively, and hosted by and processed by Lakes And Land, Air, Water Aotearoa (LAWA). The top-of-atmosphere reflectance was atmospherically corrected with the C2RCC processor, resulting in 16 bands ranging from 400-1040 nm, specifically Oa01-Oa12, Oa16-Oa18 and Oa21. Satellite matchups have a 3-day tolerance window.