A New Method of Wave Mapping with HF Radar

Abstract

Study of wave height inversion with High-Frequency Surface Wave Radars (HFSWRs) has been going on for more than 40 years. Various wave inversion methods have been proposed, and HFSWRs have achieved great success in local wave measurements. However, the method of wave mapping is still under development, especially for the broad-beam HF radars. Existing methods of wave mapping are based on narrow-beam radar with beamforming. This paper introduces a way of wave height inversion, using the ratio of the second-harmonic peak (SHP) to the Bragg peak (RSB). A new wave mapping method is proposed, which can be used in both narrow and broad-beam radars, according to the way of wave inversion based on the RSB. In addition, radar wave measurements at the buoy position are compared with the in situ buoy, which show a good agreement. At last, the results of wave mapping on the two-hour timescale are given.