Australian aquatic bio-optical dataset with applications for satellite calibration, algorithm development and validation.

The authors present bio-optical data spanning 316 sets of observations made at 34 inland waterbodies in Australia. The data was collected over the period 2013-2021 and comprise radiometric measurements of remote sensing reflectance (Rrs), diffuse attenuation extinction coefficient (Kd); optical backscattering; absorption of coloured dissolved organic matter (aCDOM), phytoplankton (aph) and non-algal particles (aNAP); HPLC analysis of algal pigments including chlorophyll-a (CHL-a); organic and inorganic total suspended solids (TSS); and total and dissolved organic carbon concentration. Data collection has been timed to coincide with either Landsat 8 or Sentinel-2 overpasses.