Determination of the Statistical Moments of Sea-Surface Slopes by Optical Scanners

Abstract

The possibilities and limitations of determining the skewness and kurtosis of sea-surface slopes from satellite optical scanner measurements are analyzed. It is shown that these data do not allow precise retrieval of the skewness and kurtosis values. The empirical probability density of slopes is determined from the optical scanner data in a limited range of slopes. The Cox–Munk model used in the calculations is also defined in a limited area.