SCATSAT-1 Scatterometer Data Processing

SCATSAT-1 carries a Ku-band scatterometer with a scanning pencil beam configuration. It deploys two beams, a vertically polarized outer beam and a horizontally polarized inner beam, to cover a swath of 1800 km. The mission mainly caters to oceanographic applications and weather forecasting, with the data being extensively used for cyclogenesis predictions across the globe and specifically, the tropical region. Since the launch of SCATSAT-1 in September 2016, the satellite and payload performances as well as mission and ground segment operations have been found to be nominal and satisfactory. This article highlights various levels of operational data products as well as algorithms used for deriving radar backscatter and retrieving wind vector data from scatterometer measurements.