Satellite-based estimates of downwelling solar radiation in the 400–700 nm range at the ocean surface, expressed in moles of photons per square meter per day. The data suite provides daily or instantaneous PAR values to quantify light energy available for photosynthesis. This version 2022.0 product is derived from the ENVISAT MERIS satellite and is associated with the organization OB_CLOUD.
Use Cases
- Estimate marine primary production based on daily photosynthetically available radiation.
- Interpret phytoplankton bloom dynamics based on the availability of usable light energy.
- Provide context for optical and biogeochemical measurements using satellite-derived PAR estimates.
- Support ecosystem models that require surface light energy inputs for biological processes.
Strengths
- Provides estimates for a specific and biologically relevant light spectrum (400–700 nm).
- Quantifies a key geophysical variable (par) in a standard scientific unit (mol photons m⁻² d⁻¹).
- Derived from the ENVISAT MERIS satellite, a known remote sensing platform.
Limitations
- Last updated 2012-05-09 00:00:00; freshness should be verified.
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count and spatial/temporal resolution are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
Provenance
- Source
- nasa_earthdata
- Collection Method
- Satellite remote sensing from the ENVISAT MERIS instrument.
- Freshness
- Last updated 2012-05-09 00:00:00
- Geography
- Global ocean surface