A test of ocean surface-current mapping with over-the-horizon radar
Georges, T.M.; Harlan, J.A.; Leben, R.R.; Lematta, R.A.
Geoscience and Remote Sensing, IEEE Transactions on
Volume 36, Issue 1, Jan 1998 Page(s):101 - 110
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/36.655321
Summary:A two-day test with a decametric over-the-horizon (OTH or
ionospheric) radar in Virginia attempted to map the radial component of
ocean surface currents over a 210 000 km2 area that includes
the Florida Straits and parts of the Gulf of Mexico as distant as 1500
km. Ionospheric motions distort and bias individual measurements, but
their effects are mitigated by a combination of strategies that take
advantage of the different space and time scales of oceanic and
ionospheric motions. In addition, nearby land echoes are used as zero
Doppler references to correct for ionospheric shifts. The result is a
composite picture of the Florida Current and ancillary surface flows
with 10-15-km resolution. The picture agrees quantitatively with known
currents in the region, but reveals dynamical features with new detail.
Concurrent sea-surface topography in the Gulf of Mexico, derived using
tandem altimetric observations from the TOPEX/Poseidon and ERS-1
satellites, confirms that a region where the OTH radar measures a
southwestward current greater than 1 m/s-1 coincides with the
confluence of the Tortugas Gyre and the Gulf of Mexico Loop Current.
These results suggest that consistent surface current maps can be
constructed by using OTH radar to repeatedly interrogate a region of
interest, perhaps over several days
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