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Full catalog/CYGNSS_L3_V3.2
CYGNSS_L3_V3.2·v3.2·dataset

Ocean winds from reflected GPS signals (CYGNSS)

CYGNSS Level 3 Science Data Record Version 3.2
ocean NASA POCLOUD Level 3 netCDF-4
In plain English

What it measures. Average ocean surface wind speed and sea-surface roughness, mapped onto a regular grid across the tropics and beyond.

How it's made. Derived from the CYGNSS satellite constellation, which measures GPS signals reflected off the ocean; the raw delay-Doppler maps are processed into wind speeds and binned onto a 0.2-degree grid, with one file per day.

How & where you'd use it. Especially valuable for measuring winds inside tropical storms and hurricanes, where it can see through rain that blocks other sensors.

What's measured

OCEANS › OCEAN WINDS › SURFACE WINDS › WIND DIRECTIONOCEANS › OCEAN WINDS › SURFACE WINDS › WIND SPEED

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2018-08-01 → ongoing
  • Measured byCYGNSS (DDMI)
  • Processing levelLevel 3
  • Spatial extent-180, -40, 180, 40
  • FormatsnetCDF-4
  • StatusCOMPLETE

What you can do with it

  • Watch sea-surface temperature and marine heatwaves
  • Spot algal blooms and ocean-colour shifts
  • Support fisheries and coastal monitoring
Official description

This dataset contains the version 3.2 CYGNSS level 3 science data record which provides the average wind speed and mean square slope (MSS) on a 0.2x0.2 degree latitude by longitude equirectangular grid obtained from the Delay Doppler Mapping Instrument aboard the CYGNSS satellite constellation. The Level 2 Delay Doppler Map (DDM) data are used in the direct processing of the average wind speed and MSS data that are binned on the Level 3 grid. A subset of DDM data used in the direct processing of the average wind speed and MSS is co-located inside of the Level 2 data files. A single netCDF-4 data file is produced for each day of operation with an approximate 6 day latency. This version supersedes Version 3.1; https://doi.org/10.5067/CYGNS-L3X31. The reported sample locations are determined by the specular points corresponding to the Delay Doppler Maps (DDMs). The v3.2 L3 gridded wind speed product inherits the v3.2 L2 FDS data as input at the same temporal and spatial resolution as the Level 2 data, sampled on consistent 0.2 by 0.2 degree latitude by longitude grid cells. The L3 gridding algorithm is unchanged. Range Corrected Gain (RCG) has been added to the L3 netcdf files as a new data field. The CYGNSS is a NASA Earth System Science Pathfinder Mission that is intended to collect the first frequent space‐based measurements of surface wind speeds in the inner core of tropical cyclones. Made up of a constellation of eight micro-satellites, the observatories provide nearly gap-free Earth coverage using an orbital inclination of approximately 35° from the equator, with a mean (i.e., average) revisit time of seven hours and a median revisit time of three hours. This inclination allows CYGNSS to measure ocean surface winds between approximately 38° N and 38° S latitude. This range includes the critical latitude band for tropical cyclone formation and movement.

Get the data

cygnss_l3_v3.2_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="CYGNSS_L3_V3.2",
    version="3.2",
    bounding_box=(-122.5, 37.2, -121.8, 37.9),  # your area (W,S,E,N)
    temporal=("2024-01-01", "2024-12-31"),       # your dates
)
files = earthaccess.open(results)   # stream straight from POCLOUD
Browsing CMR needs no login. Downloading or streaming bytes needs a free Earthdata Login + the earthaccess package.