Sentinel-3 OLCI: Daily Water Quality Maps for Australian Waters

Sentinel-3 OLCI satellite data provides daily, full-resolution water quality parameters including chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM), and total suspended solids (TSS). The data is produced by CSIRO for the eReefs project using the FUB-CSIRO Coastal Water Processor and is reprojected onto a regular grid. Standard and algorithm-specific quality flags are provided for data control.

Use Cases

• Monitoring algal bloom dynamics based on chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentrations.
• Tracking coastal sediment plumes and turbidity based on total suspended solids (TSS) data.
• Analyzing dissolved organic matter in coastal waters based on colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) measurements.
• Assessing water quality changes over time using the daily temporal resolution of the data.

Strengths

• Data is derived from Sentinel-3 OLCI satellite imagery at full resolution, approximately 300 meters per pixel.
• Includes multiple water quality parameters: chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM), and total suspended solids (TSS).
• Provides daily temporal coverage for monitoring changes over short time scales.
• Includes standard Level 1 quality flags and additional algorithm-specific out-of-range flags for data quality control.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and total data size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Geographic coverage is implied but not explicitly stated in the provided metadata.

Provenance

Source

CSIRO under the eReefs Phase 5 project, using the FUB-CSIRO Coastal Water Processor.

Collection Method

Derived from Sentinel-3 OLCI Level 2 geophysical quantities, reprojected onto a regular grid using nearest neighbor resampling.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-18 19:35:33.041320; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Likely covers Australian coastal waters, associated with the eReefs project, but not explicitly stated.