Measurements of Wind and Waves using Coherent Marine Radars
Abstract
Extracting the mean surface wind vector and spectral wave parameters, such as significant wave height and peak period, from marine radar backscattering intensity image sequences is well developed. However, determination of surface wind fields and individual waves in space and time is still a challenging topic, in particular, due to the complex nature of the modulation transfer function. Coherent marine radars measure in addition to the backscatter intensity the radial velocity of the scatterers, which is strongly related to surface wind, waves and currents. Within this presentation, we will introduce new methodologies to retrieve ocean surface wind as well as individual wave fields using both the intensity as well as the Doppler information measured by the radar. We will show results under various wind and wave situations and compare our resulting fields to in situ measurements. In addition, we will present results from deep water as well as shallow water environments showing the applicability as well as the limitations of the system. With regards to applications we will present several technical and scientific applications. Some technical applications for wind field retrieval are wind gust detection (Figure 1) for better predictive control of wind farms as well as aviation operations (e.g. landing on vessels). A technical application with respect to individual waves is the identification and following of extreme waves. With regards to scientific applications the surface wind field can be exploited in space and time, in particular with respect to turbulence and wind gusts (Figure 1). The wave fields can be investigated with respect to getting a better understanding of the wave breaking distribution, the behavior and generation of extreme waves in space and time as well as with regards to energy dissipation within the surface zone.
Figure 1: Radar retrieved wind field sequence from 30. July 2017 between 12:34 (a)) and 12:44 UTC (f)) at the off shore wind farm Dantysk in the German Bight of the North Sea. Every wind field represents the mean wind speed over 60 s and has a spatial resolution of 30 m. The white beams represent the radar shadowed area behind the wind generators. This example shows the potential of the radar retrieved wind fields for observing wind gust in space and time.- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2018
- Bibcode:
- 2018AGUFMOS21D1606H
- Keywords:
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- 4217 Coastal processes;
- OCEANOGRAPHY: GENERALDE: 4262 Ocean observing systems;
- OCEANOGRAPHY: GENERALDE: 4275 Remote sensing and electromagnetic processes;
- OCEANOGRAPHY: GENERALDE: 4294 Instruments and techniques;
- OCEANOGRAPHY: GENERAL