HS3 Hurricane Imaging Radiometer Airborne Wind Speed Data

2010 to 2014 data from the Hurricane and Severe Storm Sentinel (HS3) mission, collected by the Hurricane Imaging Radiometer (HIRAD). This instrument was a multi-band passive microwave radiometer using interferometric aperture synthesis to measure ocean surface wind speeds in tropical storms and hurricanes from a NASA high-altitude aircraft. It was developed collaboratively by NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, the University of Central Florida, and the University of Michigan.

Use Cases

• Retrieving ocean surface wind speed in hurricanes using passive microwave brightness temperature measurements.
• Analyzing precipitation rates and atmospheric conditions within tropical cyclones.
• Studying the genesis and rapid intensification processes of storms.
• Validating and improving satellite-based wind speed algorithms with high-resolution airborne data.
• Researching the application of interferometric aperture synthesis for wide-swath microwave radiometry.

Strengths

• Data covers multiple hurricane seasons from 2010 to 2014, providing observations across different storm events.
• Uses a novel interferometric technique to produce high-resolution, wide-swath observations without mechanical scanning.
• Instrument was specifically designed for measuring wind speeds in the high-wind conditions of tropical storms and hurricanes.
• Cross-platform presence on NASA EarthData and Data.gov indicates curated, authoritative data.

Limitations

• Specific column names, row counts, and dataset size are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the license, with one specifying 'other-license-specified' and another listing 'None'.
• The most recent update date is inconsistent, listed as both 2026-03-13 and 2014-10 17.

Provenance

Source

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), University of Central Florida, University of Michigan.

Collection Method

Collected by the Hurricane Imaging Radiometer (HIRAD) instrument flown on a NASA high-altitude aircraft.

Time Range

2010 to 2014

Freshness

2026-03-13 01:36:11.160337

Geography

Areas over which tropical storms and hurricanes were flown during the GRIP (2010) and HS3 (2012-2014) campaigns.