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Marine radar ocean wave retrieval’s dependency on range and azimuth

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Abstract

The strength of the surface wave signal in marine X-band radar (MR) images strongly depends on range and azimuth (i.e., the angle between antenna look and peak wave direction). Traditionally, MR wave analysis is carried out in a set of rectangular windows covering the radar field of view (FOV). The FOV is typically partially obstructed, e.g., due to the coastline or ship superstructures. Especially for ships that are subject to regular course changes, this results in an increased variability or error associated with wave parameters. Using MR measurements from R/P FLIP, acquired off California during the 2010 US Office of Naval Research (ONR) high resolution air–sea interaction (Hi-Res) experiment, this study quantifies the dependency of the radar-based 2D wave spectrum and parameters on range and azimuth. With the help of reference data from a nearby Datawell Waverider buoy, we propose empirical methods to remove the dependency and we illustrate their efficacy.

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Notes

  1. The anemometer data were kindly provided by Luc Lenain, Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA

    Björn Lund, Clarence O. Collins & Hans C. Graber

  2. Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA

    Eric Terrill

  3. Naval Postgraduate School Monterey, Monterey, CA, USA

    Thomas H. C. Herbers

Authors
  1. Björn Lund
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  2. Clarence O. Collins
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  3. Hans C. Graber
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  4. Eric Terrill
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  5. Thomas H. C. Herbers
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Correspondence to Björn Lund.

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Responsible Editor: Val Swail

This work has been supported by the US Office of Naval Research under grants N000140710650, N000140810793, N000140910392, and N000141310288.

This article is part of the Topical Collection on the 13th Internationals Workshop on Wave Hindcasting and Forecasting in Banff, Alberta, Canada October 27 - November 1, 2013

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Lund, B., Collins, C.O., Graber, H.C. et al. Marine radar ocean wave retrieval’s dependency on range and azimuth. Ocean Dynamics 64, 999–1018 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10236-014-0725-6

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