This directory contains the RSS DISCOVER Monthly Wind Speed data set on a 1.0 degree grid

The data set is constructed using RSS Version-7 microwave radiometer wind speed data.  The input microwave data are processed by Remote Sensing Systems with funding from the NASA MEaSUREs Program and from the NASA Earth Science Physical Oceanography Program.  

This wind speed product is intended for climate study as the input data have been carefully intercalibrated and consistently processed.

We provide 2 netCDF files, one is netCDF3 format and the other is netCDF4 format.  We have heard some people have trouble reading the netCDF4 file, so netCDF3 is also provided.  The contents are identical in both.

Each netCDF file contains:
   1) monthly means of wind speed, grid size 360x180xnumber of all months since Jan 1988(increases over time)
   2) a 12-month set of climatology wind speed, grid size 360x180, the climatology is an average calculated over the 20-year period 1988-2007
   3) monthly anomalies of wind speed derived by subtracting the above climatology maps from the monthly means, grid size 360x180x#months since Jan 1988 (increases over time)
   4) a wind speed trend map, grid size 360x180, the trend is calculated from 1988-01-01 to the latest complete calendar year
   5) a time-latitude plot (a minimum of 10% of latitude cells is required for valid data), grid size 180x#months since Jan 1988 (increases over time)

In addition to the above variables, we include
   satellites_used:	information about which satellites were included that month in calculating the mean
				the array is sized #months x 10 satellites, 1= used, 0=not used
				instruments are 1=SSMI F08,2=SSMI F10,3=SSMI F11,4=SSMI F13,5=SSMI F14,
				6=SSMI F15,7=SSMIS F16,8=SSMIS F17,9=AMSRE on AQUA,10=WindSat on Coriolis,11=AMSR2 on GCOM-W1

   global_mean_wind_speed_anomaly:    the monthly Average Near-Global Mean Wind Speed Anomaly over Ice-Free Oceans, 60S to 60N, array size #months
   tropical_mean_wind_speed_anomaly:  the Monthly Average Tropical Mean Wind Speed Anomaly over Ice-Free Oceans, 20S to 20N,  array sized #months

   The remaining variables are time, latitude, longitude, climatology_time, and bounds for each of these

Read routines are provided in the read_routines directory, though a tool such as Panoply (http://www.giss.nasa.gov/tools/panoply/) is an easy way to view the data.  
IDL:	   read_wspd_netcdf.pro
Matlab:    read_wspd_netcdf.m
Python:    Show_RSS_wspd_netCDF.py and readnetcdf.py 

The netCDF file contains CF-compliant metadata.
data grid values with -999.0 means missing data (land, etc)
data grid values with -500.0 means ice


Please acknowledge use of this data set when used in your work.
For example, include this citation:
Remote Sensing Systems, 2012, updated MMMYYYY [this should be the date of the file]. Monthly Mean Wind Speed Data Set on a 1 degree grid made from Remote Sensing Systems Version-7 Microwave Radiometer Data, [accessed on DATE ACCESSED]. Santa Rosa, CA, USA. Available at www.remss.com

If you want to be notified of updates or changes to this dataset, email support@remss.com and ask to be placed on the wind product email list.


More information is available at the www.discover-earth.org/wind website 
See also 
	Wentz, FJ, L Ricciardulli, KA Hilburn and others, 2007, How much more rain will global warming bring?, Science, 317, 233-235



Please send questions/feedback to RSS Support:
http://www.remss.com/support




!document created Feb 14, 2014 dsmith
!document updated Jan 22, 2016 dsmith