PALSAR-2 ScanSAR: Tropical Cyclone Mocha Satellite Imagery

PALSAR-2 ScanSAR data was collected by JAXA in response to Tropical Cyclone Mocha forming on 11 May 2023 and making landfall near Sittwe, Myanmar, with winds up to 175 km/h. The dataset contains orthorectified, 25-meter resolution normalized backscatter data from ALOS-2's broad area observation mode, covering a width of 350 km. Data is provided as 16-bit digital numbers convertible to gamma naught values in decibels.

Use Cases

• Map flood inundation in low-lying coastal areas based on the description of expected inundation in Bangladesh.
• Assess wind damage to infrastructure and agriculture based on described catastrophic wind speeds and exposed infrastructure valued at $35.3 billion.
• Monitor land deformation and potential landslides triggered by the cyclone using synthetic aperture radar backscatter data.
• Support emergency evacuation planning and humanitarian impact assessment for an estimated 8.7 million potentially exposed people.

Strengths

• Data is orthorectified using a digital elevation model, which likely improves geolocation accuracy.
• Provides 25-meter resolution radar imagery with a 350 km observation swath, suitable for regional analysis.
• Includes a documented equation for converting 16-bit digital numbers to gamma naught values in decibels.

Limitations

• Row count, file formats, and sample data are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.

Provenance

Source

JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency)

Collection Method

Emergency disaster observations conducted via the International Disaster Charter and Sentinel Asia.

Time Range

Observations were triggered by Tropical Cyclone Mocha, which formed on 11 May 2023.

Geography

Bay of Bengal, with focus on coastal areas of Myanmar (Rakhine, Chin, Magway, Sagaing states) and Bangladesh (Cox's Bazar).