Coastal Zone Color Scanner

The Coastal Zone Color Scanner Experiment (CZCS) was designed to map chlorophyll concentration in water, sediment distribution, gelbstoffe concentrations as a salinity indicator, and temperature of coastal waters and ocean currents. Reflected solar energy was measured in six channels: Channel 1, .433-.453 microns (blue) for chlorophyll absorption, Channel 2, .510-.530 microns (green) for chlorophyll correlation, Channel 3, .540-.560 microns (yellow) for yellow substance (Gelbstoffe used to indicate salinity), Channel 4, .660-.680 microns (red) for aerosol absorption, Channel 5 .700-.800 microns (far red) for land and cloud detection and Channel 6, 10.5-12.5 microns (infra-red) for surface temperature. CZCS measurements have 8 bit resolution.

The scan width was 1556 km centered on nadir and the ground resolution was 0.825 mk at nadir.

CZCS was launched aboard NIMBUS-7 in October 1978. Due to the power demands of the various on-board experiments the CZCS sensor was operated on an intermittent schedule. The infra-red/temperature sensor (channel 6 10.5-12.5 microns) failed within the first year of the mission. Sometime in 1981 it was determined that the sensitivity of the other CZCS sensors was degrading with time, in particular channel 4. Sensitivity degradation was persistent and increased during the rest of the mission. In mid 1984 NIMBUS-7 Mission personnel experienced turn-on problems with the CZCS system which were related to power supply problems and the annual lower power summer season of NIMBUS-7. Also spontaneous shut down of the CZCS system began occurring. These also persisted for the rest of the mission. From March 9, 1986 to June, 1986 the CZCS system was given highest priority for the collection of a contemporaneous data set of ocean color. It was turned off in June at the start of the low power season with the intention of turning it back on in December when power conditions would be more favorable. Attempts to reactivate the CZCS system in December 1986 met with failure. The CZCS sensor was official non-operational in 18 December 1986.

____________________ See Also:

The NIMBUS-7 Users Guide

Keywords: ESA European Space Agency - Agence spatiale europeenne, observation de la terre, earth observation, satellite remote sensing, teledetection, geophysique, altimetrie, radar, chimique atmospherique, geophysics, altimetry, radar, atmospheric chemistry