The Development of Imaging Spectrometry of the Coastal Ocean

The Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) on NASA´s Nimbus-7 satellite (1978-1986) demonstrated the utility of ocean color measurements for studying the dynamics of the ocean. The CZCS worked well for the continental shelf and open ocean regions. However, it did not have the spectral and spatial resolution needed to deal with the complexity of the coastal ocean. With the goal of developing tools suitable for the coastal ocean we initiated studies using the Airborne Visible-InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) in 1989. This paper reviews the progress from those initial studies to the current state of imaging spectrometry for the coastal ocean.