Dynamic oceanic and atmospheric phenomena in the Vietnamese waters viewed by satellite microwave radiometers and sars

Abstract

A combined use of multi-sensor remote sensing and in-situ data for the analysis and interpretation of the dynamic oceanic and atmospheric phenomena in the coastal Vietnamese zone and in the open South-China Sea is considered. The dataset consists of ERS-1/2 SAR, Envisat ASAR and ALOS PALSAR precision and quick look images acquired in 1996- 2012, Terra and Aqua MODIS images, scatterometer-derived winds, ADEOS-II AMSR and Aqua AMSR-E microwave measurements and other supplementary information. The oceanic phenomena, which were revealed on SAR images include the coastal and river fronts, upwellings, eddies, internal waves, natural and anthropogenic films, swells, etc. Mesoscale spiral eddies the size of 5-10 km were detected due to filamentary slicks mainly in the coastal zone. Surface expressions of oceanic internal waves were observed both in the coastal zone and in the open sea. Integrated atmospheric parameters and sea surface wind speed have been estimated in tropical cyclones, fronts and other marine weather systems from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for the Earth Observing System (AMSR-E) of Aqua, from the QuikSCAT and ASCAT scatterometers.