DopSCA, Scatterometer-based Simultaneous Ocean Vector Current and Wind Estimation

Satellite wind scatterometers like the MetOp SG (Second Generation) SCA of Eumetsat are not designed to measure ocean currents, yet if they could, it would improve the wind vector product and provide important additional information to the oceanographic community for various applications. Previous publications showed this possibility, but only with modifications to the system. In this paper the possibilities of measuring the ocean current vector simultaneously with the wind vector without modifications to the SCA system, are investigated through simulation studies. The measurement principle relies on phase change in a pulse pair measurement. The results indicate that it should be possible with SCA to measure the ocean current vector simultaneously with the wind with an accuracy of better than 1 m/s on a 50 × 50 km grid.