Aquarius V5.0: Annual Descending Ocean Wind Speed

Aquarius Official Release Level 3 Wind Speed Standard Mapped Image Descending Annual Data V5.0 provides gridded ocean surface wind speed data at a 1-degree spatial resolution. This dataset is derived from the Aquarius/SAC-D satellite mission, a collaboration between NASA and Argentina's CONAE, using three radiometers and a scatterometer. It contains annual averages calculated exclusively from satellite descending passes.

Use Cases

• Analyzing annual wind speed climatology based on gridded 1-degree resolution data.
• Studying ocean surface roughness corrections for salinity estimation using scatterometer backscatter data.
• Validating and comparing satellite-derived wind products from the Aquarius instrument's three-beam configuration.
• Investigating long-term trends in ocean wind patterns from a dedicated satellite mission.

Strengths

• Provides the official end-of-mission public data release (Version 5.0) from the Aquarius/SAC-D mission.
• Offers data at a standardized 1-degree spatial resolution across multiple temporal scales (daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal, annual).
• Derived from a sophisticated instrument suite with three radiometers and a dedicated scatterometer for surface roughness correction.

Limitations

• Metadata completeness is low; specific column names, row counts, and file sizes are not provided.
• The dataset is limited to wind speed values retrieved only from satellite descending passes.
• There is a conflict in freshness information: one source lists an update in 2026, while another lists 2015, suggesting potential metadata errors.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Comision Nacional de Actividades Espaciales (CONAE)

Collection Method

Satellite remote sensing from the Aquarius/SAC-D mission, using radiometers and a scatterometer.

Time Range

Annual averages (specific years not stated).

Freshness

2026-03-13 17:06:52.006412

Geography

Global ocean coverage.