Satellite oceanography: review of the progress and future prospects

Abstract

Satellite oceanography has opened up a whole new dimension in our ability to observe the vast oceanic region in addition to providing information about other components of the climate systems. The developments in the sensor technology using various regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, coupled with the developments in computers and ocean modelling, have enabled the scientists to visualise the 3-D structure of the ocean and their evolution. Many of the parameters of the physical and biological oceanography can now be obtained from space with useful accuracies for several applications such as air-sea interaction and data assimilative predictive models. The current and planned satellites from various agencies offer new opportunities for scientific community and are playing a key role in global experiments such as World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) and Climate Variability (CLIVAR). The scatterometry, altimetry and radiometry have already provided critical information needed for El-Nino southern oscillation phenomena studies under Tropical Ocean and Global Atmosphere (TOGA) experiment. It has now become possible to study fronts and circulation of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) in the southern hemisphere using altimetry data, which has remained a largely unexplored region due to hostile environment.