Software Package for an Adaptive Satellite-based Sampling for Oceanographic cruises

The temporal and spatial variability of the horizontal mesoscale and submesoscale circulation strongly affect marine environment fields and biogeochemical budgets and this represents a real challenge during in situ measurements. Indeed, samplings which are only few tens of kms or few weeks apart may be representative of very different situations.
The software package SPASSO (Software Package for an Adaptive Satellite-based Sampling for Oceanographic cruises) has been developed to overcome this problem. SPASSO diagnostics are based on NRT acquisition of satellite altimetry and ocean color and on model predictions.

SPASSO provides maps of dynamical and biogeochemical structures such as fronts, eddies and filaments, in addition to chlorophyll and SST, which are automatically generated. SPASSO can be used in Delayed Time (DT) for providing products in a region of interests or else for performing a systematic multi-field DT analysis of a region at various scales. SPASSO is used to guide the in situ sampling strategy as well as the interpretation of collected observations. This adaptive strategy based on these diagnostics has been applied during several ocean campaigns since 2010.

Use of SPASSO for an adaptive sampling strategy during SWOT-AdAC campaigns

SWOT-AdAC Consortium members can get in touch with SWOT-AdAC Science Officer Louise Rousselet (louise.rousselet@mio.osupytheas.fr) which will support  their in situ campaigns to compare results from different sites and develop near real-time sampling strategies.

Credits and acknowledgements

All people who contributed to SPASSO development are warmly thanked: F. Nencioli, A. Della Penna, L. Izard, S. Barrillon, G. Fifani, A. Doglioli and A. Petrenko.

The SPASSO package is freely distributed in the hope that it is useful for oceanographic community. For more information please contact:
A.Doglioli, S.Barrillon, L.Izard, F.d’Ovidio, F.Nencioli and A.Petrenko

Download SPASSO package [Here]

SPASSO development was supported by:

– European Commission FPA_Copernicus_SGA4_Tier 1 – Work Programme 2018-1-87 (FPACUP_SGA4_Tier1; Specific Grant Agreement No. 6
Implementing the FPA 275/G/GRO/COPE/17/10042)

– CNES, focused on BioSWOT-MED campaign;

– -LEFE/IDAO, LEFE/CYBER and Region PACA (LATEX, 2007-2011)

SPASSO is operated with the support of the SIP (Service Informatique de Pythéas) and in particular C. Yohia, J. Lecubin. D. Zevaco and C. Blanpain (Institut Pythéas, Marseille, France).