Jason-2 OGDR Wind and Wave Products: Monitoring, Validation and Assimilation

Abstract

Jason-2 altimeter OGDR-BUFR wind and wave products are validated operationally against available observations and ECMWF model fields. The Ku-band significant wave height (SWH) is better than its Jason-1 counterpart. However, the surface wind speed needs some improvements. The positive impact of assimilating Jason-2 SWH in the ECMWF wave model was proved through several numerical experiments. Jason-2 SWH replaced Jason-1 operationally on 10 March 2009. After its move to a new orbit, Jason-1 SWH was also proved to have limited, yet positive impact leading to its reintroduction into the ECMWF system on June 8, 2009.

Keywords:

• Data assimilation
• ECMWF
• Jason-2
• OGDR
• operational geophysical data record
• optimal interpolation
• peak wave period
• radar altimeter
• significant wave height
• WAM
• wave buoy
• wave model
• wind speed

Acknowledgements

This work depends mainly on altimeter and in situ data made available by various data providers around the world including, but not limited to, Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES), European Space Agency (ESA), European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).