A new hurricane wind retrieval algorithm for SAR images

Abstract

A new algorithm for hurricane wind retrieval is developed based on the primary characteristics of hurricane processes. By assuming constant wind speeds and equal-distant wind directions in three neighboring subimage blocks of any specific concentric circle around the hurricane eye, both wind speed and wind direction are resolved without any external information. To evaluate the accuracy of the new algorithm, a Radarsat-1 synthetic aperture radar image of hurricane Isabel is studied. The retrieved wind speed is compared with QuikSCAT scatterometer winds and in situ winds. Good consistency is shown. Since the new algorithm doesn't rely on any external wind information, fine resolution wind structures can be retrieved without adding errors due to linear interpolation of the externally-derived coarse-resolution wind direction. Copyright 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.