Terrestrial MERIS

The Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) is one of a number of oceanographic imaging spectrometers inspired by the success of the Coastal Zone Colour Scanner (CZCS). Between 1988 (the first meeting of what was to become the MERIS Science Advisory Group) and the launch of Envisat in 2001, there has been a gradual re-branding of MERIS. It is now a sensor with a much broader environmental remit. Using MERIS's development history and by tracking key adaptations to its mission objectives, we demonstrate how its radiometric, spectral and geometric specifications can benefit terrestrial remote sensing, particularly at regional to global scale