Validation of Meris Water Products in the Southern North Sea: 2002-2008

This paper describes the validation of MERIS water products for the Southern North Sea for the period July 2002 to September 2008. During this period, 39 matchups were obtained for the parameters water-leaving reflectance spectra, chlorophyll a concentration and total suspended matter concentration, of which 12 are in optimal conditions. Previous validation results reported for 2002-5 are updated to 2008. Conclusions are largely reinforced since the MERIS processor has not changed. In particular it is recommended to improve estimation of the spectral slope of aerosol reflectance in turbid waters. Some image artifacts are noted including noisy low chlorophyll data. Inherent optical property data is analysed and compared to the assumptions used for derivation of the MERIS products. Turbidity has been added to the in situ parameter set, strengthening quality control of water sample analysis.