The Operational Use of QuikSCAT Ocean Surface Vector Winds at the National Hurricane Center

The utility and shortcomings of near-real-time ocean surface vector wind retrievals from the NASA Quick Scatterometer (QuikSCAT) in operational forecast and analysis activities at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) are described. The use of QuikSCAT data in tropical cyclone (TC) analysis and forecasting for center location/identification, intensity (maximum sustained wind) estimation, and analysis of outer wind radii is presented, along with shortcomings of the data due to the effects of rain contamination and wind direction uncertainties. Automated QuikSCAT solutions in TCs often fail to show a closed circulation, and those that do are often biased to the southwest of the NHC best-track position. QuikSCAT winds show the greatest skill in TC intensity estimation in moderate to strong tropical storms. In tropical depressions, a positive bias in QuikSCAT winds is seen due to enhanced backscatter by rain, while in major hurricanes rain attenuation, resolution, and signal saturation result in a large negative bias in QuikSCAT intensity estimates. QuikSCAT wind data help overcome the large surface data void in the analysis and forecast area of NHC’s Tropical Analysis and Forecast Branch (TAFB). These data have resulted in improved analyses of surface features, better definition of high wind areas, and improved forecasts of high-wind events. The development of a climatology of gap wind events in the Gulf of Tehuantepec has been possible due to QuikSCAT wind data in a largely data-void region. The shortcomings of ocean surface vector winds from QuikSCAT in the operational environment at NHC are described, along with requirements for future ocean surface vector wind missions. These include improvements in the timeliness and quality of the data, increasing the wind speed range over which the data are reliable, and decreasing the impact of rain to allow for accurate retrievals in all-weather conditions.