Princess Enheduanna, daughter of king Sargon of Akkad, lived around 2300 BC. She was a high priestess of the moon god Nanna in the ancient city of Ur. And an accomplished poet too. In fact, she is the author of a number of Sumerian hymns, and is generally considered to be the earliest author known by name. When she came to honor Inanna – the goddess of sexual love, fertility, and warfare, daughter of Nanna and often associated with the planet Venus (the one that the Akkadians called Ishtar) – above all the other gods of the Sumerian pantheon, she mentioned for the very first time, in her Hymn number 8, nothing less than the “Seven Seas”. . . Septem Maria, would call them the Romans centuries later, after inher- ing the concept from the Greeks (for whom seven probably just meant several), but perhaps applying it to the wrong place – i. e. the extensive system of coastal lagoons, which at the time dotted the northern Adriatic Sea – at least in the description of Pliny the Elder, Roman fleet commander and scholarly author of Historia Naturalis. Indeed, which seven seas are int- ded depends on the context. According to the historians, there are at least nine bodies of water in the medieval European and Arabic literature that can - pire to qualify as one of the famous seven.
The enclosed and marginal seas surrounding the European continent exhibit a wide spectrum of environmental traits, ranging from sub-polar to sub-tropical climates, from shallow continental shelves to deep oceanic basins, from pristine marine reserves to regions impacted by countless economic and recreational activities. Understanding the inner workings of these seas – aiming to reconcile the conflicting needs of protecting their ecological balance and exploiting their natural resources – requires adequate observation systems, integrating both in situ and remote sensing techniques. This volume reviews the current potential of Earth Observations, while devoting particular attention to applications dealing with the issues, peculiarities and special challenges posed by the European Seas. The assessment of surface parameters by means of passive techniques – which measure reflected visible and near-infrared sunlight, or surface emissions in the thermal infrared or microwave spectral regions – is addressed. Active techniques – which use transmitted impulses of visible or microwave radiation, for a subsequent evaluation of the signal returned by the water surface – are covered as well. An in-depth analysis of the specific merits and drawbacks of each spectral region, and of both passive and active techniques, provides clues to help compose the unique mosaic of dynamical and bio-geo-chemical features of the European Seas.
Audience:
Scientists and researchers working in the field of Earth and Marine Science. Lecturers and tutors, as well as (graduate) students, in the same field. Academic Libraries.
