Phytoplankton blooms have been monitored from April 2003 to August 2004, between latitudes 41°S and 45°S, in the region of Los Lagos in Chile, using MERIS and AATSR data from ENVISAT and from in situ oceanographic measurements. Apparently no other applications of remote sensing to monitor ocean features in this area was found. High frequency of cloud coverage, except in summer when plankton blooms prevail, may be one of the reasons to underestimate this technique. The study has included sampling in the coastal areas of this region using a Fluoroprobe, instrument specifically designed to simultaneously measure total concentration of chlorophyll and quantify the abundance of the following 5 algae divisions: Chlorophyceae, Cyanophyceae, Bacillariophyceae, Dinophyceae and Chryptophyceae. Moreover, vertical profiles of temperature were measured in the water column, in several parts of the studied area during more than one annual cycle. The results of a preliminary validation of the remotely sensed data are presented. This is the first step of a new line of research in this region demonstrating that remote sensed applications can be developed towards an operational project for fisheries, as done now in the central and northern parts of the country, but also including aquaculture and tourism activities, in relation to monitor environmental parameters which determine harmful microbial development in coastal waters