Remote Sensing of Suspended Particulate Matter Variability of The Global Coastal Waters Over The Last Decade

Satellite remote sensing now allows for the collection of various physical and biological parameters at regional and global scales and at different temporal resolutions which are not accessible to other sampling methods. The first objective of the GlobCoast project (www.foresea.fr/globcoast/) is to assess and analyze the seasonal, inter-annual, and decadal evolution of the global coastal waters in terms of biogeochemical composition as revealed from satellite ocean colour observations. The present study focuses on the suspended particulate matter, SPM, over the global coastal ocean. A new global SPM algorithm, combined with a new atmospheric correction algorithm, have been developed, evaluated, and applied to the MERIS (2002-2012) archive. This unique data set, characterized by a great spatio-temporal coverage, thanks to the applied atmospheric correction algorithm, can then be used for many kind of research activities. Examples of global and regional patterns are then provided.