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The first Sentinel-1 SAR image of a typhoon

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Abstract

In this note, we present the first Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) typhoon image acquired in the northwest Pacific on October 4, 2014. The eye shape and sea surface wind patterns associated with Typhoon Phanfone are clearly shown in the high-quality SAR image. SAR winds retrieval procedure was given but the actual wind estimates will only be available after the European Space Agency (ESA) releases the official calibration coefficients in order to accurately derive the SAR-measured normalized radar cross section. This study demonstrates the advantage of Sentinel-1 SAR with regards to imaging fine scale typhoon patterns on the sea surface beneath storm clouds. This paper also advocates the use of Sentinel-1 SAR data that is made freely and openly available worldwide for the first time in civilian SAR history.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. GST, College Park, Maryland, 20740, USA

    Xiaofeng Li

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  1. Xiaofeng Li
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Correspondence to Xiaofeng Li.

Additional information

Foundation item: The NOAA Product Development, Readiness, and Application (PDRA)/Ocean Remote Sensing (ORS) Program funding.

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Li, X. The first Sentinel-1 SAR image of a typhoon. Acta Oceanol. Sin. 34, 1–2 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-015-0589-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-015-0589-8

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