Terrestrial ecosystems have been identified as being a critical component of the variability of the global carbon cycle. Given the natural diversity of landscapes, the instrumented measurement and validation approach remains challenging. Earth observation from airborne and spaceborne platforms is the only observational approach capable of providing data at the relevant scales and resolution needed to extrapolate findings of in situ (field) studies to larger areas, to document the heterogeneity of the biosphere at the regional scale and to connect these findings into a global view. Recent developments of Earth observation satellites and airborne platforms demonstrate that imaging spectroscopy is a valuable addition to the quantification of relevant parameters describing processes within the carbon cycle. Even though a number of imaging spectrometers is available in space (e.g. MODIS, MERIS, Hyperion, etc.), their performance relies on an integrated approach, including a sound instrument design, a well implemented calibration strategy and finally a processing chain capable of handling large amounts of spectral data in due time.
