QSCAT/NCEP Blended Ocean Winds from Colorado Research Associates (version 5.0)

Ocean surface wind data are derived from spatial blending of high-resolution satellite data (SeaWinds instrument on the QuikSCAT satellite - QSCAT) and global weather center re-analyses (NCEP), resulting in high temporal and spatial resolution datasets (6-hourly, and 0.5 by 0.5 degree) of u- and v- wind vector components and windstress curl. The global coverage datasets begin in July 1999 and ends in July 2009.

Surface wind component and wind stress curl fields are available in three forms: 1) a product that is the blended wind field output, 2) fields consisting of the NCEP re-analyses spline interpolated to the 0.5 by 0.5 degree grid (i.e. no QSCAT data blended), and 3) a product that is output from an intermediate step in the blending process that consists of the superposition of QSCAT observations on NCEP before blending. This product is useful to identify the satellite data swaths in each composite of 12-hours of QSCAT observations.

CAUTION: This blended wind product was developed for general circulation scale analyses - see these cautionary notes [https://rda.ucar.edu/datasets/ds744.4/docs/Blended_Winds_Caution]. The blending methodology is summarized in this document [https://rda.ucar.edu/datasets/ds744.4/docs/Blended_Winds_Summary].

NOTE: The QSCAT satellite has permanent failed so this data time series has ended.

To Access Resource:

Questions? Email Resource Support Contact:

  • Zaihua Ji
    zji@ucar.edu
    UCAR/NCAR - Research Data Archive

Temporal Range

  • Begin:  1999-07
    End:  2009-07

Keywords

Resource Type dataset
Temporal Range Begin 1999-07
Temporal Range End 2009-07
Temporal Resolution N/A
Bounding Box North Lat 88
Bounding Box South Lat -88
Bounding Box West Long -180
Bounding Box East Long 180
Spatial Representation grid
Spatial Resolution N/A
Related Links

Related Resource #1 : NASA JPL PO.DAAC

Related Resource #2 : The re-analyses winds are from the NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis project
Additional Information N/A
Resource Format Binary
Standardized Resource Format Binary
Asset Size 134027 MB
Legal Constraints

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Access Constraints None
Software Implementation Language N/A

Resource Support Name Zaihua Ji
Resource Support Email zji@ucar.edu
Resource Support Organization UCAR/NCAR - Research Data Archive
Distributor NCAR Research Data Archive
Metadata Contact Name N/A
Metadata Contact Email rdahelp@ucar.edu
Metadata Contact Organization NCAR Research Data Archive

Author Northwest Research Associates, Inc.
Publisher Research Data Archive at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Computational and Information Systems Laboratory
Publication Date 2001-02-26
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) https://doi.org/10.5065/XQYC-1602
Alternate Identifier d744004
Resource Version N/A
Topic Category oceans
Progress completed
Metadata Date 2024-08-04T02:11:41Z
Metadata Record Identifier edu.ucar.rda::d744004
Metadata Language eng; USA
Suggested Citation Northwest Research Associates, Inc.. (2001). QSCAT/NCEP Blended Ocean Winds from Colorado Research Associates (version 5.0). Research Data Archive at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Computational and Information Systems Laboratory. https://doi.org/10.5065/XQYC-1602. Accessed 16 February 2025.

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