NASA Validates Ocean Color Instrument in Monterey Bay
In autumn 2024, a NASA team visited California's Monterey Bay to validate the Ocean Color Instrument (OCI) on the PACE satellite. By measuring water leaving reflectance, the team confirmed the accuracy of satellite data in detecting phytoplankton and other materials in the ocean. The validation process involved airborne and seaborne campaigns to gather data under different environmental conditions.
In autumn 2024, California's Monterey Bay experienced an outsized phytoplankton bloom that attracted fish, dolphins, whales, seabirds, and scientists. A team from NASA's Ames Research Center, UCSC, and the Naval Postgraduate School gathered data to verify satellite observations. The PACE mission aims to understand ocean and atmospheric environments in detail. AirSHARP validated the Ocean Color Instrument (OCI) data through airborne and seaborne campaigns in 2024 and 2025. OCI measures water leaving reflectance to analyze water composition. Aerosols can affect OCI data, quantified by aerosol optical depth. The team used a Twin Otter aircraft for low-altitude flights to collect data over Monterey Bay. Data from the campaign is available on data archive systems.
According to the source: Mirage News.
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