Theme 3: Biophysical ECVs ~ validating Carbon stocktaking, GHG emissions and biosphere
Figure 1: Sentinel-3, image credit: ESA
Objectives of Theme 3: Biophysical ECVs include developing satellite derived SI traceable measurement methods (uncertainty assessment, associated validation and interoperability) for greenhouse gases emissions and natural carbon sinks, to support robust monitoring of implemented policies to reduce the anthropogenic carbon emission (in accordance with the Paris Agreement of 2015 and Vienna 2018).
This initiates development of a strategy and methods to establish traceability and evaluate associated uncertainties of retrieved GHG inventories at the power-station/city-scale.
The project continues to quantify the uncertainty of Carbon stored in sinks such as forest biomass and ocean phytoplankton. This includes retrieval algorithms and ‘ground-truthing’. The optical domain provides critical insight on health and classification of the biosystem, and this is complemented by Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR).
MetEOC-4 will expand validation methods to include drone-based SAR and optical observations, for the first time assigning uncertainties based on combined observation techniques.