Advanced remote sensing capabilities provide unprecedented opportunities for monitoring, studying, and forecasting the ocean environment. An integrated approach of synthesizing remote sensing data with in situ measurements and ocean models is highly desirable, both for physical and biological oceanography, polar oceanography and for marine gravity and geodesy on the regional, basin and global scales. This session provides a forum for interdisciplinary discussions of the latest advances in all aspects of oceanographic applications of remote sensing.

Several aspects of the remote sensing of the ocean are covered in this session. Topics include but are not limited to: physical oceanographic variability and interactions with the atmosphere; biological variability and the carbon cycle; marine gravity and space geodesy, advances in the measurement and interpretation of the ocean surface salinity, and new instrument and techniques in ocean remote sensing.

Abstracts addressing the measurement of ocean surface currents and winds are of special interest. Ocean currents can be measured from space using a wide range of sensors and techniques: by tracking features in SST and colour-derived variables, combining altimeter geostrophic currents with scatterometer wind-driven currents, and using SAR Doppler centroid methods. They can of course be also measured from land-based HF radars. Ocean winds can be measured from space by scatterometry, SAR, and passive microwave. Studies that address the use of innovative remote sensing techniques (e.g. GNSS-R), as well as measurements in extreme conditions such as tropical and extra-tropical cyclones, are encouraged. Studies focused on the exploitation and assimilation of satellite-derived wind data into numerical models for ocean forecasting and climate studies are also welcome. In particular, we encourage contributions that focus on the strengths and limitations of current wind data products, and on projected future wind data needs.