Intercomparison of the SEASAT, SASS, SMMR and Altimeter Derived Winds

The Seasat-A altimeter measures the ocean surface back-scatter coefficient,0^{0}, using a1.6\deghalf-power radar beam width directed to the spacecraft nadir. The values obtained for0^{0}can be used to infer the magnitude of the ocean surface wind. This investigation describes results obtained during the Gulf of Alaska Experiment which compare the altimeter derived surface winds with results obtained from the SASS side lobes evaluated at nadir and from the SMMR. For conditions characterized by significant wave heights of 4 m or less, the0^{0}values obtained from the altimeter and the SASS agreed to within 1.5 db. The winds inferred using the GEOS-30^{0}-to-wind algorithm, developed by G. Brown, are compared with the results obtained from GOASEX surface wind fields derived from spot reports and from the GEOS-3 altimeter.