CloudSat W-Band Radar Measurements of Surface Backscatter

The authors examine the characteristics of the W-band surface backscatter cross section using data from the 94-GHz cloud profiling radar on the CloudSat mission. These data from CloudSat represent the first global measurements of surface properties at 94 GHz. The authors use these data to investigate seasonal changes in surface backscatter over both land and ocean. The authors also make use of a limited set of off-nadir data to investigate behavior of W-band backscatter from the ocean versus wind speed for incidence angles up to 17°.