On the Role of Wind Direction in ERS SAR Signatures of Internal Waves on the Iberian Shelf

The relationship between internal wave (IW) signatures in Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images and wind velocity is investigated. The effect of the wind velocity relative to the IW propagation direction on the IW signature is studied by means of a defined signature mode parameter ( S m ). S m is the parameter that quantifies the signature of the IW intensity profile in relation to the mean backscatter of the image background.

A wind contrast model based on a simple first-order Bragg scattering theory is combined with hydrodynamic modulation theory to explain the modulation of IW signatures. It takes into account the modulation of short-scale surface waves by the effect of the relative variations of wind velocity and the surface currents generated by the IWs.

It is shown that the signature mode parameter increases with the angle between the wind velocity and the IW propagation direction so that IWs propagating against the wind direction are imaged mostly as positive sign signatures, while those propagating in the wind direction are mostly negative sign signatures.