Evaluation of NSCAT-2 Wind Vectors by Using Statistical Distributions of Wind Speeds and Directions

In order to validate wind vectors derived from the NASA scatterometer (NSCAT), statistical distributions of wind speeds and directions retrieved by the NSCAT-2 geophysical model function have been investigated by comparison with wind data retrieved by the other model functions such as SASS-2 and NSCAT-1 and those derived from the wind analyses of the European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). The histogram of the NSCAT-2 wind speeds has a similar shape to those of the ECMWF and NSCAT-1 winds, but is slightly shifted toward higher wind speed to adjust negative bias which has been found in the NSCAT-1 winds by previous buoy comparison studies. Variations of the standard deviation of the NSCAT-2 wind speeds with incidence angle are greater than those of the ECMWF and NSCAT1 winds. The frequency distribution of wind directions relative to spacecraft flight direction has been calculated to assess the self-consistency of the wind directions. It was found that the NSCAT-2 wind vectors exhibit systematic directional preference relative to antenna beams. This artificial directivity is considered to be caused by imperfections in the antenna beam balancing and the geophysical model function. The skill of the ambiguity removal procedure is discussed as a function of wind speed and incidence angle, and is found to be improved compared to the NSCAT-1 winds, especially at high incidence angles. It is concluded that systematic errors in wind directions might be increased by modifications from NSCAT-1 to NSCAT-2, though the wind speed bias is removed and the ambiguity removal skill is improved.