Field spectrometer measurement errors in presence of partially polarized light; evaluation of ground truth measurement accuracy.

Considering that natural light is always partially polarized (reflection, Rayleigh scattering, etc.) and the alteration of the spectral response of spectrometers due to the polarization, some concerns were raised about the accuracy and variability of spectrometer outdoor measurements in field campaigns. We demonstrated by simple experiments that, in some circumstances, spectral measurements can be affected by the polarization. The signal variability due to polarization sensitivity of the spectrometer for the measured sample was about 5-10%. We noted that, measuring surfaces at right angle (a frequently used measurement protocol) minimized the problems due to polarization, producing valid results. On the other hand, measurements acquired with a slant angle are more or less accurate; an important proportion of the signal variability is due to the polarization. Direct sun reflection and reflection from close objects must be avoided.