image: Radarsat1 image of Typhoon Xangsane taken September 30, 2006, just as Xangsane was approaching the coast of Vietnam as a Category 2 storm. Typhoon Xangsane had previously caused substantial devastation in the Philippines, where it claimed more than 200 lives. In Vietnam and ultimately Thailand, Xangsane would continue to inflict severe wind and flood damage, and claim another 100 lives. view more
Credit: CSA/Radarsat1
MIAMI, Fla. -- The University of Miami’s Center for Southeastern Tropical Advanced Remote Sensing (CSTARS), a major program of the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science today announced that it will house a library of data collected via spaceborne C-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). The initiative, led by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), in cooperation with CSTARS, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will provide approved scientists with free access to images that will help them to better understand the dynamics of hurricane and typhoon genesis, morphology and movement.
The high quality images show many of the hidden ocean surface details of an approaching hurricane --the eye of the hurricane and the surface impression that it causes, along with the accompanying rain bands. The importance of the air-water interface zone has been long recognized as a determining factor gauging the intensity of an approaching hurricane. Although excellent imagery of the topside of hurricanes has been available for decades from NOAA, and more recently, data through the vertical columns of the cloud mass, the complementary imagery of a hurricane’s surface effects provides valuable information that can help to shape storm models and resource distribution.
“The generosity and dedication to science by the Canadian Space Agency is inspiring, and will make a major contribution to the utilization of SAR imagery in hurricane and typhoon forecasting. The fact that SAR sees the ocean surface, even in extreme storm conditions, is a critical factor for understanding the dynamics and intensity of tropical storm systems,” said Dr. Hans C. Graber, co-director of CSTARS and chair of the University of Miami’s Division of Applied Marine Physics.
CSTARS will host the database on behalf of the sponsors for the duration of the project. Scientists will be asked to submit a letter of intent, as well as a proposal in order to allow the selection those research projects that will be chosen for support in the form of free imagery. The entire collection of images will take 5 TB of space, which will be processed using CSTARS’ high performance computing suite.
The CSA has been collecting RADARSAT-1 data over hurricanes and typhoons through its "Hurricane Watch" program since 1998. CSTARS has been a partner since 2004 and provides near-real time RADARSAT-1 images to the "Hurricane Watch" program. In this period, 160 hurricane and typhoon images focusing on the eye of the storm or edge of the eyewall, from around the world, were selected and processed.
Researchers will have an opportunity to identify new approaches and applications for the study of hurricane dynamics using this valuable dataset. This research resource will also help investigators to become better acquainted with the use of remotely sensed data from RADARSAT-2 and other international missions for the future.
About CSTARS
Launched in 2003, CSTARS is a major program of the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School, one of the world’s premier marine and atmospheric research institutions. Employing low earth-orbiting satellite systems, CSTARS scientists conduct research using remotely-sensed data. They provide directly downlinked, high-resolution data for environmental monitoring of the Gulf of Mexico, Southeastern United States, northern South America, Central America and the Caribbean Basin. CSTARS also furnishes a reliable communications channel for researchers stationed at the Antarctic Southpole Research Station, connecting them via VoIP (Voice over the Internet Protocol), and providing electronic medical file transfers, when required. For more information, please visit http://cstars.rsmas.miami.edu/
About the Rosenstiel School
Founded in the 1940's, the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science has grown into one of the world's premier marine and atmospheric research institutions. Offering dynamic interdisciplinary academics, the Rosenstiel School is dedicated to helping communities to better understand the planet, participating in the establishment of environmental policies, and aiding in the improvement of society and quality of life. For more information, please visit www.rsmas.miami.edu