Happy Holidays from the IOCCG The IOCCG Chairman and the IOCCG Committee extend their best wishes to the ocean-colour community over the festive season. IOCCG Summer Lecture Series The IOCCG will be conducting an advanced Summer Lecture Series dedicated to high-level training in the fundamentals of ocean optics, bio-optics and ocean colour remote sensing. The course will take place at the Laboratoire d'Océanographie de Villefranche (LOV) in Villefranche-sur-Mer, France from 2 – 14 July 2012 (see www.obs-vlfr.fr/LOV/OMT/). A number of distinguished scientists have been invited to provide lectures on cutting edge research, focussing on current critical issues in ocean colour science. Students will be given ample opportunity to meet with the lecturers for in-depth discussions on various topics, including their own scientific research. The lecture series is open to young graduate scientists and post-doctoral fellows involved in any aspect of ocean-colour research. Students currently undertaking their PhD studies, as well as researchers with a longer record in ocean colour research hoping to broaden their knowledge, are also invited to apply. For further information on the course see the announcement on the IOCCG website: www.ioccg.org/training/upcoming.html. Deadline for applications is 16 March 2012. IOCCG Report 11 BIO-Argo The working group on Bio-optical Sensors on Argo Floats, chaired by Hervé Claustre (LOV, France), was established by the IOCCG to evaluate the feasibility of equipping Argo floats with bio-optical sensors. Bio-optical sensors on Argo floats are able to provide information about the deeper ocean layers not attainable by satellite platforms, and they can also obtain measurements of near-surface properties under conditions of cloud cover. Furthermore, these measurements can be used to validate and refine ocean colour algorithms. The working group recommended that Chl-a and POC should be the key variables to be measured systematically. They also recommended the development of three main types of bio-optical floats: (i) the BIO-Argo float, to provide vertical profiles of key biogeochemical and bio-optical variables (e.g. Chl-a fluorescence, backscattering coefficient); (ii) the Carbon-float to optically monitor POC and PIC, dedicated to process studies aimed at investigating key stocks and fluxes involved in the carbon cycle, and (iii) the Val-float to measure downwelling irradiance (Ed) and upwelling radiance (Lu) associated with Chl-a fluorescence and backscattering coefficients, for validation of ocean colour algorithms. The report from this working group has been finalised (IOCCG Report 11) and will be printed by the Joint Research Centre within the next few months which is gratefully acknowledged. Copies will be sent to all subscribers on the IOCCG mailing list, via surface mail, so please allow several months for delivery. The electronic version of the report can be downloaded from the IOCCG website at: www.ioccg.org/reports_ioccg.html. IOCCG Polar Seas Working Group The IOCCG recently established a working group on Ocean Colour Remote Sensing in Polar Seas, co-chaired by Marcel Babin (Université Laval, Canada), Kevin Arrigo (Stanford University, USA) and Simon Bélanger (Université du Québec à Rimouski, Canada). The working group was formed to increase our understanding of polar ecosystems in light of the ongoing changes in the Arctic as a result of climate change, e.g. summer ice cover has receded by ~30% over the last 3 decades and primary production and the photooxidation of coloured dissolved organic matter is increasing in Arctic waters. Ocean colour remote sensing can be used to monitor Arctic and Antarctic ecosystems on synoptic scales although there are a number of inherent difficulties and limitations, which were the focus of the first meeting of the Polar Seas working group. The meeting took place in Québec City, Canada from 10-11 November 2011, where working group members gave presentations on different aspects of remote sensing in polar seas, followed by informative discussion sessions. The group agreed to hold monthly teleconferences of the various subgroups.. A general outline of a proposed IOCCG report on the topic was prepared at the meeting. Further information can be found in the minutes of the meeting. IOCCG HAB WG meeting To be replaced by new image! The joint IOCCG/GEOHAB working group on Harmful Algal Blooms and Ocean Colour was established as a resource to greatly improve communication between the ocean colour and harmful algal bloom (HAB) scientific communities. The working group recently held its second meeting in Milan, Italy (6-8 December 2011) to review the progress and output of the first WG meeting and to help consolidate information regarding the suitability of available ocean colour techniques for HAB detection and application to different marine ecosystems. Recognising that regional approaches are needed for effective utilisation of ocean colour data in optically-complex coastal and inland waters, the WG focussed on a number of case studies to demonstrate the utility and performance of various ocean colour products. At the meeting, the structure of an IOCCG monograph on this topic was discussed including the breakdown of the various chapters and case studies. Special emphasis was placed on applications, techniques and challenges of remote sensing in inland waters, specifically ocean colour algorithms for detection of cyanobacterial blooms. A full report of the meeting plus an outline of the proposed IOCCG report will be available on the working group website shortly. Employment Opportunities Several new positions have been added to the Employment Opportunities section of the IOCCG website, including a post-doctoral position at the Joint Research Centre (Italy), 3 Principal Investigator positions at Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences (USA), and a Research Engineer in the Department of Systems Ecology (Stockholm University, Sweden), amongst others.

News from NASA First images from VIIRS NASA’s NPP satellite (National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System Preparatory Project) was successfully launched on 28 October 2011. The NPP satellite is the precursor to the next generation of operational polar-orbiting satellites, the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS), and carries a total of five instruments, including the Visible/Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) which will provide measurements of ocean biological productivity and other critical data to support long-term climate research. Less than a month after launch, the VIIRS instrument collected its first image (on 21 Nov 2011) capturing a broad swath of the US east coast (see NASA announcement). The first complete global view of ocean Chl-a concentrations (below), derived from the first day and a half of VIIRS data, was obtained on 21-22 November 2011, derived from the NASA-processed Level-2 evaluation data products processed by the NASA Ocean Biology Processing Group . First complete global view of VIIRS Chl-a concentrations (21-22 Nov 2011). Click image to see FR image on NASA GSFC website. NPP will undergo a series of tests for approximately 9-15 months before it is turned over to NOAA for operations. During NPP's five-year life, the mission will extend more than 30 key long-term datasets that include measurements of the atmosphere, land and oceans. OCR Data in Giovanni The NASA Giovanni data system, hosted at the Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC), provides a wide variety of mapped Earth science data parameters from NASA missions and projects for the scientific community. For the past few years, the only ocean colour radiometry data sets in Giovanni have been monthly averages, which do not always capture the remarkably varying patterns in the global oceans. Now, as part of the Water Quality for Coastal and Inland Waters Project (Zhongping Lee, PI; James Acker, and others), ocean colour radiometry data at 8-day resolution is now available in Giovanni. These data are available at 4-km and 9-km spatial resolution for MODIS, and at 9-km resolution for SeaWiFS. Together, these datasets comprise a 13-year observational period, beginning in September 1997 for SeaWiFS. In addition to the standard NASA data products, Giovanni is providing, for the first time, evaluation data products which include absorption coefficients and backscattering coefficients, also at 8-day resolution. Such data can yield remarkable insight into the timing of ocean optical events related to storms and floods and their effect on the coastal zone, as well as a better characterization of the growth and senescence phases of phytoplankton blooms. Follow the link to the full illustrated article, which also provides a direct link to the Giovanni 8-day ocean colour data portal. News from ESA The European Space Agency (ESA) is organising the Third MERIS-AATSR and Sentinel-3 preparatory workshop, which will be hosted in ESA-ESRIN, Frascati, Italy, from 15 to 19 October 2012. The workshop is open to scientists and students using MERIS/AATSR data, including ESA PIs and co-investigators, future follow-on Sentinel-3 data users, and representatives from space agencies and value adding industries. The goal of the workshop is to provide a forum for ESA PIs and scientists to present new results from MERIS and (A)ATSR application development projects, update users on instrument performance and product quality, gather the future Sentinel-3 R&D user community, present Sentinel-3 mission algorithms and products, discuss the transition from ENVISAT (MERIS/(A)ATSR) to Sentinel-3 (OLCI/SLSTR) in terms of scientific exploitation and foster the synergy between the MERIS &(A)ATSR and the OLCI & SLSTR instruments. Abstract Submission opens on 1 March 2012. For further information see the announcement. SCOR Book on Phytoplankton Pigments The SCOR-sponsored book, Phytoplankton Pigments, was published in October 2011 by Cambridge University Press. The book provides new information since the highly successful 1997 book from SCOR WG 78 entitled Phytoplankton Pigments in Oceanography. The previous book has been cited more than 400 times and is still used in many laboratories worldwide. Phytoplankton Pigments will be sent by SCOR to libraries in developing countries and a limited number of copies will be available from the SCOR Secretariat. Additional copies can be purchased from Cambridge University Press. Additional resources such as data sheets and appendices from the book are also available free of charge from Cambridge University Press at this site. NOWPAP Training Course The Second NOWPAP/PICES/WESTPAC joint training course on remote sensing data analysis was organized by the NOWPAP Special Monitoring & Coastal Environmental Assessment Regional Activity Centre (CEARAC), the North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES) and IOC Sub-Commission for the Western Pacific (WESTPAC) at the Far Eastern Federal University (FEFU) in Vladivostok, Russia on 8-12 October 2011. The course was co-sponsored by the IOCCG. The training course was conducted for 22 selected trainees including postgraduate students, professional researchers and local government officers working in the field of marine sciences, from China, Japan, Korea, Russia, India, Indonesia and the Philippines. Ten lecturers, including IOCCG members Yu-Hwan Ahn, Roland Doerffer and Joji Ishizaka, delivered lectures on remote sensing applications for monitoring and assessment of the marine and coastal environment in the Northwest Pacific Region. The students obtained useful skills and knowledge to utilize remote sensing data for monitoring and assessing coastal and open ocean environments. The full report of the training course is available on the NOWPAP CEARAC website.