Polarimetric microwave wind radiometer model function and retrieval testing for WindSat

A geophysical model function (GMF), relating the directional response of polarimetric brightness temperatures to ocean surface winds, is developed for the WindSat multifrequency polarimetric microwave radiometer. This GMF is derived from the WindSat data and tuned with the aircraft radiometer measurements for very high winds from the Hurricane Ocean Wind Experiment in 1997. The directional signals in the aircraft polarimetric radiometer data are corroborated by coincident Ku-band scatterometer measurements for wind speeds in the range of 20-35 m/s. We applied an iterative retrieval algorithm using the polarimetric brightness temperatures from 18-, 23-, and 37-GHz channels. We find that the root-mean-square direction difference between the Global Data Assimilation System winds and the closest WindSat wind ambiguity is less than 20/spl deg/ for above 7-m/s wind speed. The retrieval analysis supports the consistency of the Windrad05 GMF with the WindSat data.     

WindSat Passive Microwave Polarimetric Signatures of the Greenland Ice Sheet

WindSat has systematically collected the first global fully polarimetric passive microwave data over both land and ocean. As the first spaceborne polarimetric microwave radiometer, it was designed to measure ocean surface wind speed and direction by including the third and fourth Stokes parameters, which are mostly related to the asymmetric structures of the ocean surface roughness. Although designed for wind vector retrieval, WindSat data are also collected over land and ice, and this new data has revealed, for the first time, significant land signals in the third and fourth Stokes parameter channels, particularly over Greenland and the Antarctic ice sheets. The third and fourth Stokes parameters show well-defined large azimuth modulations that appear to be correlated with geophysical variations, particularly snow structure, melting, and metamorphism, and have distinct seasonal variation. The polarimetric signatures are relatively weak in the summer and are strongest around spring. This corresponds well with the formation and erosion of the sastrugi in the dry snow zone and snowmelt in the soaked zone. In this paper, we present the full polarimetric signatures obtained from WindSat over Greenland, and use a simple empirical observation model to quantify the azimuthal variations of the signatures in space and time.      

An emissivity-based wind vector retrieval algorithm for the WindSat polarimetric radiometer

The Naval Research Laboratory WindSat polarimetric radiometer was launched on January 6, 2003 and is the first fully polarimetric radiometer to be flown in space. WindSat has three fully polarimetric channels at 10.7, 18.7, and 37.0 GHz and vertically and horizontally polarized channels at 6.8 and 23.8 GHz. A first-generation wind vector retrieval algorithm for the WindSat polarimetric radiometer is developed in this study. An atmospheric clearing algorithm is used to estimate the surface emissivity from the measured WindSat brightness temperature at each channel. A specular correction factor is introduced in the radiative transfer equation to account for excess reflected atmospheric brightness, compared to the specular assumption, as a function wind speed. An empirical geophysical model function relating the surface emissivity to the wind vector is derived using coincident QuikSCAT scatterometer wind vector measurements. The confidence in the derived harmonics for the polarimetric channels is high and should be considered suitable to validate analytical surface scattering models for polarized ocean surface emission. The performance of the retrieval algorithm is assessed with comparisons to Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS) wind vector outputs. The root mean square (RMS) uncertainty of the closest wind direction ambiguity is less than 20/spl deg/ for wind speeds greater than 6 m/s and less than 15/spl deg/ at 10 m/s and greater. The retrieval skill, the percentage of retrievals in which the first-rank solution is the closest to the GDAS reference, is 75% at 7 m/s and 85% or higher above 10 m/s. The wind speed is retrieved with an RMS uncertainty of 1.5 m/s.     

Effects of foam on ocean surface microwave emission inferred from radiometric observations of reproducible breaking waves

WindSat, the first satellite polarimetric microwave radiometer, and the NPOESS Conical Microwave Imager/Sounder both have as a key objective the retrieval of the ocean surface wind vector from radiometric brightness temperatures. Available observations and models to date show that the wind direction signal is only 1-3 K peak-to-peak at 19 and 37 GHz, much smaller than the wind speed signal. In order to obtain sufficient accuracy for reliable wind direction retrieval, uncertainties in geophysical modeling of the sea surface emission on the order of 0.2 K need to be removed. The surface roughness spectrum has been addressed by many studies, but the azimuthal signature of the microwave emission from breaking waves and foam has not been adequately addressed. Recently, a number of experiments have been conducted to quantify the increase in sea surface microwave emission due to foam. Measurements from the Floating Instrumentation Platform indicated that the increase in ocean surface emission due to breaking waves may depend on the incidence and azimuth angles of observation. The need to quantify this dependence motivated systematic measurement of the microwave emission from reproducible breaking waves as a function of incidence and azimuth angles. A number of empirical parameterizations of whitecap coverage with wind speed were used to estimate the increase in brightness temperatures measured by a satellite microwave radiometer due to wave breaking in the field of view. These results provide the first empirically based parameterization with wind speed of the effect of breaking waves and foam on satellite brightness temperatures at 10.8, 19, and 37 GHz.     

Wind direction over the ocean determined by an airborne, imaging,polarimetric radiometer system

The speed and direction of winds over the ocean can be determined by polarimetric radiometers. This has been established by theoretical work and demonstrated experimentally using airborne radiometers carrying out circle flights and thus measuring the full 360° azimuthal response from the sea surface. An airborne experiment, with the aim of measuring wind direction over the ocean using an imaging polarimetric radiometer, is described. A polarimetric radiometer system of the correlation type, measuring all four Stokes brightness parameters, is used. Imaging is achieved using a 1-m aperture conically scanning antenna. The polarimetric azimuthal signature of the ocean is known from modeling and circle flight experiments. Combining the signature with the measured brightness data from just a single flight track enables the wind direction to be determined on a pixel-by-pixel basis in the radiometer imagery     

Polarimetric measurements of sea surface brightness temperaturesusing an aircraft K-band radiometer

Presents the first experimental evidence that the polarimetric brightness temperatures of sea surfaces are sensitive to ocean wind direction in the incidence angle range of 30 to 50°. The experimental data were collected by a K-band (19.35 GHz) polarimetric wind radiometer (WINDRAD) mounted on the NASA DC-8 aircraft. A set of aircraft radiometer flights was successfully completed in November 1993. The authors performed circle flights over National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) moored buoys deployed off the northern California coast, which provided ocean wind measurements. The results indicate that passive polarimetric radiometry has a strong potential for global ocean wind speed and direction measurements from space     

Accuracy of scatterometer-derived winds using the Cramer-Rao bound

A wind scatterometer makes measurements of the normalized radar-backscatter coefficient σ° of the ocean surface. To retrieve the wind, a geophysical model function (GMF), which relates σ° to the near-surface wind, is used. The wind vector can be estimated using maximum-likelihood techniques from several σ° measurements made at different azimuth angles. The probability density of the measured σ° is assumed to be Gaussian with a variance that depends on the true σ° and therefore, depends on the wind through the GMF. With this model for wind estimation, the Cramer-Rao (C-R) bound is derived for wind estimation, and its implications for wind retrieval are discussed. As part of this discussion, the role of geophysical modeling error is considered and shown to play a significant role in the performance of near-surface wind estimates. The C-R bound is illustrated using parameters from the ERS AMI, NSCAT, and Sea Winds scatterometers     

Polarimetric brightness temperatures of sea surfaces measured withaircraft K- and Ka-band radiometers

Dual-frequency (19 and 37 GHz), multi-incidence measurements of the Stokes parameters of sea surface microwave emission are reported. A series of aircraft polarimetric radiometer flights were carried out over the National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) moored buoys deployed off the northern California coast in July and August 1994. Measured radiometric temperatures showed a few Kelvin azimuth modulations in all Stokes parameters with respect to the wind direction. Wind directional signals observed in the 37-GHz channel were similar to those in the 19-GHz channel. This indicates that the wind direction signals in sea surface brightness temperatures have a weak frequency dependence in the range of 19-37 GHz. Harmonic coefficients of the wind direction signals were derived from experimental data versus incidence angle. It was found that the first harmonic coefficients, which are caused by the up and downwind asymmetric surface features, had a small increasing trend with the incidence angle. In contrast, the second harmonic coefficients, caused by the up and crosswind asymmetry, showed significant variations in T _v and U data, with a sign change when the incidence angle increased from 45° to 65°. Besides the first three Stokes parameters, the fourth Stokes parameter, V, which had never been measured before for sea surfaces, was measured using our 19-GHz channel. The Stokes parameter V. Has an odd symmetry just like that of the third Stokes parameter U, and increases with increasing incidence angles. In summary, sea surface features created by surface winds are anisotropic in azimuth direction and modulate all Stokes parameters of sea surface microwave brightness temperatures by as large as a few Kelvin in the range of incidence angles from 45° to 65° applicable to spaceborne observations     

Comparison of WindSat brightness temperatures with two-scale model predictions

Predictions of the polarized microwave brightness temperatures over the ocean are made using a two-scale surface bidirectional reflectance model combined with an atmospheric radiative transfer model. The reflected atmospheric radiation is found to contribute significantly to the magnitude and directional dependence of the brightness temperatures. The predicted brightness temperatures are also sensitive to the form of the shortwave spectrum. Calculations are made using a new physically based model for the wave spectrum, and preliminary comparisons are made with WindSat observations at 10.7, 18.7, and 37 GHz, for wind speeds ranging from 0-20 m/s and for vertically integrated atmospheric water vapor concentrations from 0-70 mm. Predictions of the mean (azimuthally averaged) brightness temperatures for vertical and horizontal polarization agree quite well with WindSat observations over this range of wind speeds and water vapor concentrations. The predicted azimuthal variations of the third and fourth Stokes parameters also agree fairly well with the observations, except for the fourth Stokes parameter at 37 GHz. Further adjustments of the wave spectrum are expected to improve the agreement.     

QuikSCAT geophysical model function for tropical cyclones andapplication to Hurricane Floyd

The QuikSCAT radar measurements of several tropical cyclones in 1999 have been studied to develop the geophysical model function (GMF) of Ku-band radar σ₀ values (normalized radar cross section) for extreme high wind conditions. To account for the effects of precipitation, the authors analyze the co-located rain rates from the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) and propose the rain rate as a parameter of the GMF. The analysis indicates the deficiency of the NSCAT2 GMF developed for the NASA scatterometer, which overestimates the ocean σ₀ for tropical cyclones and ignores the influence of rain. It is suggested that the QuikSCAT σ₀ is sensitive to the wind speed of up to about 40-50 m s^-1. The authors introduce modifications to the NSCAT2 GMF and apply the modified GMF to the QuikSCAT observations of Hurricane Floyd. The QuikSCAT wind estimates for Hurricane Floyd in 1999 was improved with the maximum wind speed reaching above 60 m s^-1. The authors perform an error analysis by comparing the QuikSCAT winds with the analyses fields from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Hurricane Research Division (HRD). The reasonable agreement between the improved QuikSCAT winds and the HRD analyses supports the applications of scatterometer wind retrievals for hurricanes     

Deep-space calibration of the WindSat radiometer

The WindSat microwave polarimetric radiometer consists of 22 channels of polarized brightness temperatures operating at five frequencies: 6.8, 10.7, 18.7, 23.8, and 37.0 GHz. The 10.7-, 18.7-, and 37.0-GHz channels are fully polarimetric (vertical/horizontal, /spl plusmn/45/spl deg/ and left-hand and right-hand circularly polarized) to measure the four Stokes radiometric parameters. The principal objective of this Naval Research Laboratory experiment, which flys on the USAF Coriolis satellite, is to provide the proof of concept of the first passive measurement of ocean surface wind vector from space. This paper presents details of the on-orbit absolute radiometric calibration procedure, which was performed during of a series of satellite pitch maneuvers. During these special tests, the satellite pitch was slowly ramped to +45/spl deg/ (and -45/spl deg/), which caused the WindSat conical spinning antenna to view deep space during the forward (or aft portion) of the azimuth scan. When viewing the homogeneous and isotropic brightness of space (2.73 K) through both the main reflector and the cold-load calibration reflector, it is possible to determine the absolute calibration of the individual channels and the relative calibration bias between polarimetric channels. Results demonstrate consistent and stable channel calibrations (with very small brightness biases) that exceed the mission radiometric calibration requirements.     

Modeling of wind direction signals in polarimetric sea surfacebrightness temperatures

There has been an increasing interest in the applications of polarimetric microwave radiometers for ocean wind remote sensing. Aircraft and spaceborne radiometers have found a few Kelvins wind direction signals in sea surface brightness temperatures, in addition to their sensitivities to wind speeds. However, it was not clear what physical scattering mechanisms produced the observed brightness dependence on wind direction. To this end, polarimetric microwave emissions from wind-generated sea surfaces are investigated with a polarimetric two-scale scattering model, which relates the directional wind-wave spectrum to passive microwave signatures of sea surfaces. Theoretical azimuthal modulations are found to agree well with experimental observations for all Stokes parameters from near nadir to 65° incidence angles. The upwind and downwind asymmetries of brightness temperatures were interpreted using the hydrodynamic modulation. The contributions of Bragg scattering by short waves, geometric optics scattering by long waves and sea foam are examined. The geometric optics scattering mechanism underestimates the directional signals in the first three Stokes parameters, and predicts no signals in the fourth Stokes parameter (V). In contrast, the Bragg scattering was found to dominate the wind direction signals from the two-scale model and correctly predicted the phase changes of the upwind and crosswind asymmetries in T_υ and U from middle to high incidence angles. The phase changes predicted by the Bragg scattering theory for radiometric emission from water ripples is corroborated by the numerical Monte Carlo simulation of rough surface scattering. This theoretical interpretation indicates the potential use of polarimetric brightness temperatures for retrieving the directional wave spectrum of short gravity and capillary waves     

Polarimetric radar remote sensing of ocean surface wind

Experimental data are presented to support the development of a new concept for ocean wind velocity measurement (speed and direction) with the polarimetric microwave radar technology. This new concept has strong potential for improving the wind direction accuracy and extending the useful swath width by up to 30% for follow-on NASA spaceborne scatterometer mission to SeaWinds series. The key issue is whether there is a relationship between the polarization state of ocean backscatter and surface wind velocity at NASA scatterometer frequencies (13 GHz). An airborne Ku-band polarimetric scatterometer (POLSCAT) was developed for proof-of-concept measurements. A set of aircraft flights indicated repeatable wind direction signals in the POLSCAT observations of sea surfaces at 9-11 m/s wind speed. The correlation coefficients between co- and cross-polarized radar response of ocean surfaces have a peak-to-peak amplitude of about 0.4 and are shown to have an odd-symmetry with respect to the wind direction, unlike the normalized radar cross sections     

Polarization rotation and the third Stokes parameter: the effects of spacecraft attitude and Faraday rotation

The third Stokes parameter of ocean surface brightness temperatures measured by the WindSat instrument is sensitive to the rotation angle between the polarization vectors at the ocean surface and the instrument. This rotation angle depends on the spacecraft attitude (roll, pitch, yaw) as well as the Faraday rotation of the electromagnetic radiation passing through the Earth's ionosphere. Analyzing the WindSat antenna temperatures, we find biases in the third Stokes parameter as function of the along-scan position of up to 1.5 K in all feedhorns. This points to a misspecification of the reported spacecraft attitude. A single attitude correction of -0.16/spl deg/ roll and 0.18/spl deg/ pitch for the whole instrument eliminates all the biases. We also study the effect of Faraday rotation at 10.7 GHz on the accuracy of the third Stokes parameter and the sea surface wind direction retrieval and demonstrate how this error can be corrected using values from the International Reference Ionosphere for the total electron content when computing Faraday rotation.     

Calibration of WindSat polarimetric channels with a vicarious cold reference

Absolute calibration of WindSat's third and fourth Stokes brightness temperatures (T/sub 3/ and T/sub 4/) is needed at the tenth of Kelvin level in order to adequately resolve their dependence on wind direction. Previous aircraft based fully polarimetric microwave radiometers have generally relied on "circle flights", during which a single area of the ocean is observed at all azimuth angles, to estimate residual biases in the calibration of its polarimetric channels. WindSat, the first spaceborne fully polarimetric microwave radiometer, operates in low Earth orbit and thus cannot execute this traditional calibration technique. A new method is presented to estimate the residual biases that are present in WindSat's T/sub 3/ and T/sub 4/ estimates. The method uses a vicarious cold reference brightness temperature applied to measurements made by WindSat at /spl plusmn/45/spl deg/ slant linear (T/sub P/ and T/sub M/) and left- and right-hand circular (T/sub L/ and T/sub R/) polarization. WindSat derives the third and fourth Stokes brightness temperatures by the differences T/sub P/-T/sub M/ and T/sub L/-T/sub R/, respectively. The method is demonstrated by applying it to the 10.7-GHz WindSat observations. Calibration biases of 0.2-0.6 K are determined with a precision of 0.04 K.     

Ocean surface wind speed and direction retrievals from the SSM/I

A semiempirical model is developed that retrieves ocean surface wind direction information in addition to improved wind speeds from Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) measurements. Radiative transfer and neural network techniques were combined in the authors' approach. The model was trained and tested using clear sky cases, but atmospheric transmittance is retrieved so that retrieval in other than clear sky conditions is possible. With two SSM/I instruments currently providing operational ocean surface wind speed retrievals, the addition of wind direction information and improved wind speed retrievals will enhance the impact of this data in weather prediction models and marine weather forecasting     

HUT fully polarimetric calibration standard for microwave radiometry

This paper describes the Helsinki University of Technology's Fully Polarimetric Calibration Standard (FPCS). The developed standard generates a complete Stokes reference vector and it is applied for the end-to-end absolute calibration of a fully polarimetric microwave radiometer at 36.5 GHz. The FPCS is based on the function principle of a Gasiewski-Kunkee linearly polarized (tripolarimetric) standard, with an additional phase retardation plate to generate the fourth Stokes parameter. Design considerations and operational aspects of the standard are discussed in this paper. An advanced calibration procedure, which takes advantage of both the tripolarimetric and fully polarimetric calibration scenes to suppress calibration uncertainties, is introduced. The feasibility of the standard has been verified and the generated brightness temperatures in a sample calibration are presented. An extensive set of tests has been performed to evaluate the characteristics and performance of the calibration standard. Furthermore, the use of the advanced calibration procedure to measure the characteristics of the phase retardation plate has been successfully demonstrated. The achievable calibration accuracy is analyzed and discussed relative to requirements for maritime wind vector measurements; the results indicate that the pixel-to-pixel retrieval of the wind speed is possible with high accuracy and the retrieval of the wind direction with at least moderate accuracy. In addition to calibration of a fully polarimetric radiometer, other potential applications, e.g., linearity measurements, are discussed.     

数字全极化微波辐射计系统设计与定标分析

海洋风场是海洋与大气作用的重要参数之一。全极化微波辐射计是一种新型的微波遥感器。数字全极化微波辐射计采用多路数字相关技术,对水平和垂直极化信号进行相关处理,产生反演海面风场模型所需海面亮温Stokes矢量。详细介绍了数字全极化微波辐射计的系统设计方法,包括射频前端、中频段和数字相关器的设计。同时给出了系统内定标以及外定标方法。对数字全极化微波辐射计做了细致的理论分析和硬件实现设计。     

Digital correlation microwave polarimetry: analysis anddemonstration

The design, analysis, and demonstration of a digital-correlation microwave polarimeter for use in Earth remote sensing is presented. The authors begin with an analysis of a three-level digital correlator and develop the correlator transfer function and radiometric sensitivity. A fifth-order polynomial regression is derived for inverting the digital correlation coefficient into the analog statistic. In addition, the effects of quantizer threshold asymmetry and hysteresis are discussed. A two-look unpolarized calibration scheme is developed for identifying correlation offsets. The developed theory and calibration method are verified using a 10.7 GHz and a 37.0 GHz polarimeter. The polarimeters are based upon 1-GS/s three-level digital correlators and measure the first three Stokes parameters. Through experiment, the radiometric sensitivity is shown to approach the theoretical as derived earlier in the paper and the two-look unpolarized calibration method is successfully compared with results using a polarimetric scheme. Finally, sample data from an aircraft experiment demonstrates that the polarimeter is highly useful for ocean wind-vector measurement     

The Fully Polarimetric Imaging Radiometer SPIRA at 91 GHz

The Scanning Polarimetric Imaging Radiometer (SPIRA) is a versatile fully polarimetric imager operating at 91 GHz. It is designed for measurements of polarimetric signatures of the Earth's surface and man-made objects. SPIRA combines a method for the measurement of the complete polarization state with a relatively fast high-resolution imager, which is suitable for a range of applications. The instrument measures all four Stokes parameters simultaneously and delivers images by mechanically scanning the scene with an elevation over azimuth scanner and an offset parabolic antenna. A two-channel heterodyne receiver is used for the reception of polarized radiation. The Stokes parameters are obtained by correlating two linear orthogonal-polarization components in a broadband analog adding correlator. In this paper, we present the design of the instrument and analyze its radiometric and polarimetric characteristics. The polarimetric calibration and a method for the characterization of the polarimetric calibration device are described. First polarimetric measurements are presented and discussed.