An extensive network of high frequency radars observes and maps surface currents in U.S. coastal waters. This network provides valuable data for use in near real-time applications such as search and rescue and oil spill response while maintaining a long-term public data record that is available for scientific research. ODU operates five radar stations in Virginia and Maryland; two of these sites are located in the lower Chesapeake Bay and three are located on the Atlantic coast. The individual antenna stations produce hourly radial data which are combined into a gridded total vector product and posted online for public access. This presentation will provide an introduction to high frequency radar technology and then take a closer look at the lower Chesapeake Bay radar currents record. An analysis of the multi-year record yields an improved knowledge of average spatial patterns and variability in the tidal and non-tidal components of surface flow.

Teresa Updyke is a research associate at CCPO. She has worked with Dr. Larry Atkinson and the coastal ocean radar systems since 2007. An an active member of the radar operator community, she works on data quality and management issues at regional and national levels. She received a Master's of Oceanography degree from ODU under the advisement of Dr. Ann Gargett and she holds a B.S. in Earth & Atmospheric Sciences from Georgia Tech. As a graduate student, she helped develop a method to estimate vertical overturning length scales from CTD profile data. She was first introduced to the field of oceanography, and more specifically, the analysis of tides and currents in estuarine environments, through work opportunities at the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography and with NOAA's Center for Operational Oceanographic Products & Services.

CCPO Innovation Research Park Building I 4111 Monarch Way, 3rd Floor Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA 23508 757-683-4940