IMOS - Satellite Remote Sensing - SNPP - 01 day - Chlorophyll-a concentration (OC3 model)

The SNPP satellite platform carries a VIIRS sensor that observes sunlight reflected from within the ocean surface layer at multiple wavelengths. These multi-spectral measurements are used to infer the concentration of chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), most typically due to phytoplankton, present in the water. There are multiple retrieval algorithms for estimating Chl-a. These data use the OC3 method recommended by the NASA Ocean Biology Processing Group and implemented in the SeaDAS processing software l2gen. The OC3 algorithm is described at http://oceancolor.gsfc.nasa.gov/cms/atbd/chlor_a (and links therein).