Hurricane Helene

Hurricane Helene was a devastating tropical cyclone that produced a wide swath of damage and loss of life that extended from northwest Florida, US, where the storm made landfall on 26 September 2024, to Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina.

Hurricane Helene was closely monitored using Copernicus Sentinel-1 radar data to assess its wind field over the ocean surface. This technology plays a crucial role in understanding storm dynamics and predicting their impacts.

Satellite-based sensors, particularly those operating in microwave frequencies, can capture data on ocean surface wind speed and direction under various weather conditions. The Ocean Wind Field (OWI), derived from Sentinel-1, provided detailed estimates of wind vectors at 10 m above the ocean surface. This information is essential for meteorologists to analyse the storm's intensity and trajectory.