Hybrid Ocean Wind Sensor (HOWS)

This proposed Phase I effort will investigate and develop the necessary innovations to realize the Hybrid Ocean Wind Sensor system that will provide critical measurements to support the XOVWM planned for 2014 and serve as a true testbed for this mission by providing active and passive, C and Ku-band measurements of the ocean surface from high altitude platforms. The Phase I effort will focus on developing the HOWS system design and determining the design and feasibility to realize a low loss electronic steering, dual beam antenna and a low power, compact transceiver module that supports active and passive remote sensing of the ocean vector wind. The proposed HOWS system will acquire measurements critical to assessing the design of the next generation scatterometer missions planned for 2014 (XOVWM). The HOWS system also fulfill a critical need of TPC/NHC for continuous, accurate, wide area coverage of the oceans surface vector wind field and provide hurricane researchers at HRD and other institution with critical measurements to improving the understanding of tropical cyclone intensification. The NASA Global Hawk UAV and the NOAA G-IV aircraft are just two potential platforms for this instrument. With its lower power, stealthy active and passive design, it is perfectly suited for military theatre operations and search and rescue operations over the ocean.