FAPAR derived from MERIS over Europe

FAPAR derived from MERIS over Europe in July 2003. The current validation phase aims to assess the accuracy and the quality of the algorithm products by comparing the MERIS operational Level-2 geophysical product (MGVI) generated at reduced spatial resolution with similar ones generated from other sensors. In order to perform the comparison exercise, it is critical to acquire cloud-free remote sensing measurements over the same geographical regions and at approximately the same acquisition time from various space-borne instruments. This comparison is conducted using daily (instantaneous) products over geographically limited regions, as well as 10-day and monthly composite products over Europe (as illustrated by the side image of FAPAR). Evaluations of the FAPAR products against ground-based estimations have also been initiated over some Earth Observing System (EOS) validation sites.