Advancing Earth Observations of Coastal and Inland Aquatic Ecosystems and Wetlands

Malik Chami is a Professor of Physics at Sorbonne Université, France. His research spans radiative transfer modeling, satellite remote sensing of ocean color, radiometry, sensor characterization, and atmospheric correction over oceans. He specializes in the optical and directional properties of marine particles and the development of optical instrumentation. He contributed to the creation of OSOAA, an open-source radiative transfer model for the coupled atmosphere–ocean system. His work includes developing inversion algorithms to retrieve bio-optical properties of hydrosols, particularly in coastal waters. He collaborates with interdisciplinary teams in applied mathematics, AI, biology, and sedimentology. As a recognized expert, he serves on mission advisory groups for CNES and ESA, helping define scientific requirements for future satellite missions focused on aquatic ecosystems.Michael Rast studied geology and remote sensing at Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich. He joined ESA, where he helped define mission and science requirements for Earth observation satellites. After a research year at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, he earned a doctorate in space-based imaging spectroscopy. He later served as Senior Programme Officer at the GEO Secretariat in Geneva and led ESA’s Science Strategy Office in Frascati, Italy. In 2017, he became Senior Advisor to the Director of Earth Observation Programmes. Since retiring from ESA in 2022, he has been Director of Earth Sciences at the International Space Science Institute (ISSI) in Bern, Switzerland, and Professor of Terrestrial Remote Sensing at Ludwig-Maximilians University.Daniel Odermatt is an expert in remote sensing applications for lakes and head of the surface waters remote sensing research group at the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Eawag. He uses optical and thermal in situ measurements to improve the determination of geophysical variables using Earth observation satellite data, and hydrodynamic models to enhance the interpretation of the variables obtained in this way. His focus ranges from specific bio-optical processes in lakes in the Alpine region to the analysis of global datasets regarding indicators of water quality, aquatic biodiversity or ecosystem tipping points. He serves as a national Delegate to ESA’s Earth Observation advisory group.Alexander Damm leads the Remote Sensing of Water Systems (RSWS) group, a joint professorship between the University of Zurich (UZH) and the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag). He holds MSc and PhD degrees in geography with specialization in remote sensing from Humboldt University Berlin. Since joining UZH in 2008, he has focused on imaging spectroscopy and its applications across Earth systems. His research aims to advance Earth observation for studying water systems, emphasizing remote sensing fundamentals and the impact of environmental change on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. He contributes to interdisciplinary projects such as FLEX, GALENE (ESA), DeltAs, Spatial-Sustainable-Finance (SNSF), UrbaNature (MeteoSwiss), and NextGenCarbon (EU).Nicole Pinnel is a remote sensing scientist at the Earth Observation Center of the German Aerospace Center (DLR). She holds a PhD in Natural Sciences from the Technical University of Munich and has over 20 years of experience in aquatic remote sensing. Her work focuses on hyperspectral and multispectral applications for water quality and ecosystem monitoring, with particular emphasis on submerged aquatic vegetation and shallow water habitats. She specializes in species mapping, bio-optical modelling, and the analysis of inland and coastal waters. She has spent several years in Australia contributing to international projects on benthic habitats and coral reef mapping at CSIRO and Murdoch University, and has supported capacity-building initiatives for water-quality assessment in Costa Rica. Since 2018 she has been responsible for coordinating user support within the Ground Segment of the EnMAP hyperspectral satellite mission, fostering engagement with an international user community.Astrid Bracher is an environmental physics professor at Universität Bremen and head of the Aquatic optics remote sensing group at the Alfred-Wegener-Institut, Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Germany. Her research focuses on innovative algorithm development for identifying phytoplankton composition and physiology and spectral underwater light properties. For two decades her group supports validation of satellite sensors by large bio-optical data sampling on many oceanic expeditions and campaigns in the German coastal and inland waters. She uses satellite and field data to study the coupling of phytoplankton changes to environmental conditions, water quality, and biodiversity. She co-chairs the IOCCG Task Force on Hyperspectral Remote Sensing and is member of the Copernicus Marine Service Scientific Thematic Advisory Committee (STAC), ESA’s Sentinel-3-Next Generation Optical Mission Advisory Group (S3NGO- MAG) and the ENMAP Science Advisory Group (EnSAG).Claudia Giardino holds a PhD in remote sensing from the Polytechnic of Milan. She is a research director at CNR-IREA (National Research Council of Italy - Institute for Electromagnetic Sensing of the Environment) in Milan and has over 25 years experience in remote sensing. She is an expert in biophysical parameter retrieval, imaging spectroscopy, multi-source data processing, and calibration and validation. Her research and applications focus on optically complex waters, bio-optical modelling, water quality monitoring, shallow water mapping, and exploiting satellite-derived climate data records for lakes. She assists national and international organisations in strengthening current and novel satellite missions to support studies of aquatic ecosystems.

• Why do we need specific Earth Observation capabilities for aquatic science and the management of inland and coastal aquatic ecosystems including wetlands.- Sensors and Synergy Innovative and complementary satellite missions for aquatic science and applications.- Remote Sensing of the Polarization Properties of the Water Atmosphere System.- Atmospheric correction for coastal and inland waters.- Calibration and validation strategy for Level 1 L1and Level 2 L2 satellite products.- Pelagic primary producers in aquatic ecosystems: current status of Earth observation and strategy to move forward.- Floating matter and marine plastic litter.- Littoral Shallow Ecosystems.- Current practice and recommendations for the calibration and validation of remotely sensed biophysical variables in aquatic ecosystems.- Characterisation mapping and monitoring of inland coastal and marine aquatic ecosystems from Earth observations.- Carbon Cycling at the Interface of Aquatic and Terrestrial Ecosystems.