AUTHOR=McClain Charles R. , Franz Bryan A. , Werdell P. Jeremy 

TITLE=Genesis and Evolution of NASA’s Satellite Ocean Color Program

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Remote Sensing

VOLUME=Volume 3 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/remote-sensing/articles/10.3389/frsen.2022.938006

DOI=10.3389/frsen.2022.938006

ISSN=2673-6187

ABSTRACT=We recount, based on our involvements in NASA ocean color flight projects, the chronology of technical challenges, lessons learned, and key developments over the past 40+ years of NASA satellite ocean color, beginning with the Nimbus-7/Coastal Zone Color Scanner, that have led to the upcoming Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission.  Topics include the evolution of (1) satellite ocean color and field bio-optical data access, (2) satellite sensor capabilities, i.e., CZCS to PACE’s hyperspectral Ocean Color Imager, OCI, (3) atmospheric corrections, (4) pre- and post-launch sensor characterization and calibration, (5) bio-optical algorithms, (6) in situ-derived radiometry and photosynthetic pigment data measurement quality, and (7) applications of hyperspectral satellite observations.