MERCATOR OCEAN JOURNA: 
SEPTEMBER 2021 
2. POST 2021 PROSPECTS 
The OCTAC will continue to improve the accuracy at the basin 
level of the existing EOVs, 1.e., CHL, IOPs and PFTs/PSCs, with 
particular attention to optically complex waters occurring in 
shelf and coastal zone. To this aim, R&D will need to test and 
axpand the use of semi-analytical models instead of empirical 
models and foster the use of optical water type-specific 
algorithms. In addition, the list of products will be expanded 
“ncorporating R&D, performed either within the consortium or 
externally, to include new biogeochemical EOVs related to the 
Carbon cycle (e.g., POC, PIC, phytoplankton biomass, PSD, 
regional PP, regional PFTs/PSCs NRT/daily). 
Users and agencies are interested in products that cover 
oceanic, shelf and coastal waters, to monitor for example 
compliance to EU’s Water and Marine Strategy Framework 
Directives or coastal hazards and their drivers. However, 
the higher spatial-resolution data stream needed for 
coastal applications require specific processing as the 
upstream processing chain does not provide yet the same 
product suite as the Ocean Colour sensors. R&D studies 
are needed to investigate data fusion between the two 
observational classes to provide multi-resolution products 
with different resolution depending on location (i.e., -1 km 
in the ocean, 300 m over the shelf, down to tens of metres 
in coastal waters). This may lead to the development of 
experimental daily-products at 10 m resolution, combining 
spectral and temporal resolution of VIIRS and OLCI with the 
spatial resolution of S2/MSI +L8/OLI. 
Furthermore, dedicated R&D should focus on the 
preparation for the NASA PACE science mission currently 
planned for a 2024 launch and for the Copernicus Sentine: 
"0 CHIME currently planned for a 2026 launch. In 2021- 
2024, exploratory studies to exploit hyperspectraı 
zapabilities should be carried out using the ASI PRISMA, or 
DLR ENMAP spaceborne data. This is expected to improve 
accuracy of retrieved biogeochemical quantities, noveı 
retrieval approaches and new products maps.