Influence of Assimilating CYGNSS Ocean Surface Wind Data on Tropical Cyclone Analyses and Predictions

For the analysis and forecasting of tropical cyclones, the main benefits of data from the CYGNSS constellation of satellites are the increased revisit frequency compared with polar-orbiting satellites and the ability to provide ocean surface wind observations through convective precipitation. Consequently, CYGNSS delivers an improved capability to observe the structure and evolution of ocean surface winds in and around tropical cyclones. This study quantifies the impact of assimilating CYGNSS delay-Doppler maps, CYGNSS retrieved wind speeds and derived CYGNSS wind vectors on 6-hourly analyses and 5-day forecasts of developing tropical cyclones, using the 2019 version of NOAA's operational Hurricane Weather Research and Forecasting (HWRF) model.