NASA SCATTEROMETER EXPERIMENT

Satellite scatterometers are microwave radars capable of measuring nea r-surface vector winds (both speed and direction) over the oceans unde r all weather conditions. The ata generated from these instruments are used in scientific studies of upper ocean circulation tropospheric dy namics, air-sea interaction and climate change; in operational meteoro logy as a means to increase numerical weather forecast skill and the a ccuracy of storm warning predictions; and in commercial applications s uch as ship routing. The scatterometer wind measurement technique was demonstrated with the flight of the Seasat Scatterometer in 1978. This paper summarizes the scatterometry measurement technique, describes t he design of the NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) instrument recently launch ed aboard the National Space Development Agency of Japan's (NASDA) Adv anced Earth Observing Satellite (ADEOS), presents first results from t he NSCAT instrument, and describes the future U.S. program for measuri ng surface marine wind vectors. (C) 1996 International Astronautical F ederation. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.