  AEROS is a 3U CubeSat pathfinder toward a future ocean-observing
constellation, targeting the Portuguese Atlantic region. AEROS features a
miniaturized, high-resolution Hyperspectral Imager (HSI), a 5MP RGB camera, and
a Software Defined Radio (SDR). The sensor generated data will be processed and
aggregated for end-users in a new web-based Data Analysis Center (DAC). The HSI
has 150 spectrally contiguous bands covering visible to near-infrared with 10
nm bandwidth. The HSI collects ocean color data to support studies of
oceanographic characteristics known to influence the spatio-temporal
distribution and movement behavior of marine organisms. Usage of an SDR expands
AEROS's operational and communication range and allows for remote
reconfiguration. The SDR receives, demodulates, and retransmits short duration
messages, from sources including tagged marine organisms, autonomous vehicles,
subsurface floats, and buoys. The future DAC will collect, store, process, and
analyze acquired data, taking advantage of its ability to disseminate data
across the stakeholders and the scientific network. Correlation of animal-borne
Argos platform locations and oceanographic data will advance fisheries
management, ecosystem-based management, monitoring of marine protected areas,
and bio-oceanographic research in the face of a rapidly changing environment.
For example, correlation of oceanographic data collected by the HSI, geolocated
with supplementary images from the RGB camera and fish locations, will provide
researchers with near real-time estimates of essential oceanographic variables
within areas selected by species of interest.
