Ships of all sizes and purposes from large container ships to
racing
sailboats
and mariners retracing explorers routes
find altimeter data of use. The most commonly used products are
geostrophic currents and surface winds.
Currents
Altimeter data is used to provide geostrophic currents which are
the non-tide and non-wind component of currents. In many cases
geostrophic currents are a major component of the current.
Optimal ship routes are planned to avoid areas where currents
will work against the ships progress. This is particularly
important in areas where currents exceed a knot (1 nautical
mile an hour). Regional maps of geostrophic velocity vectors
overlaid on maps of sea levels are produced by the
Hawaii
node of Coastwatch. These are provided as analog maps.
Regions available are:
- American Samoa
- Hawaiian Chain
- North Equatorial Counter
- Current and Western Pacific
Global and Regional maps of geostrophic velocity vectors overlaid on maps of sea
levels are also produced by the
University of Colorado.
Available regions are:
- the Bering Sea
- Gulf of Mexico
- the Gulf Stream
Surface Winds
Altimeter data can also provide a snapshot of actual near-real
time wind speeds over large areas which can be used for strategic planning.
Several data sources
exist for global and regional data products. Higher resolution
near-real time measurements will be available from a spaceborne
scatterometer, QuikSCAT,
due to be launched in the summer of 1999.
