Classification of sea slicks by multi-frequency radar techniques: the influence of the temperature and of the morphology affect on water wave damping

During the SAXON-FPN campaign, some sea slicks that represent surface-active substances of the most important fractions of biogenic slicks were overflown with the five-frequency HELISCAT radar scatterometer at different water temperatures (282.8-290.6 K). It turned out that the radar signals, which can largely be interpreted by the MARANGONI damping theory, depend both on the chemical structure of the organic compounds and on the morphology of the surface films. Thus far, this latter aspect has been completely ignored. The temperature effect appears to play a secondary role for slick-induced ocean wave damping.<>