SeaWinds Wind Retrieval Quality Assessment

The SeaWinds on QuikScat scatterometer is the first in a series of new scanning pencil-beam Ku-band scatterometers. The viewing geometry is significantly different than previous fan beam instruments, resulting in different characteristics in the retrieved winds. In this paper we provide an assessment of the reliability of the SeaWinds ambiguity selection using a SeaWinds data-only algorithm. An ambiguity selection quality assurance algorithm developed for NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) data is modified for use with SeaWinds data. The algorithm uses the selected ambiguity field to estimate the parameters of a simple wind field model and examines significant differences between the fields, enabling detection of possible ambiguity errors. Tests against subjectively analyzed selection errors suggest that the algorithm correctly detects more than 94% of all ambiguity errors. Applying the algorithm, we find that the ambiguity selection accuracy exceeds 93%.