Thailand has added CODAR SeaSonde HF radars to its Marine Disaster Warning System. Three SeaSonde networks are providing current information to Thailand's disaster management authorities. The networks are operated by MetLink Info Co., on behalf of the Thai Meteorological Department. Additional details and coastal Thailand SeaSonde-derived current and wave data can be viewed online via the Thai Marine Meteorological Disaster Warning System Website. This article is reproduced with permission from the CODAR Ocean Sensor Website.


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San Francisco State University has released new iPhone and iPad applications that provide real-time and predicted surface current information within the San Francisco Bay. Designed by researchers at SF State, the app relies on data supplied by the Coastal Ocean Currents Monitoring Program in Northern California (COCMP-NC), which monitors offshore currents and reports that information to the public. SF State is responsible for monitoring currents in the San Francisco Bay and along the coast from south of Point Reyes to Pillar Point near Half Moon Bay. The app uses Google Maps and GPS to give...


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For the first time, "oceanographic radars" are officially recognized by the ITU, with their own primary, provisional primary, and secondary bands. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is responsible for worldwide management of the radio-frequency spectrum and “development of technical standards that ensure networks and technologies seamlessly interconnect”. The ITU convenes every four to five years in a World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) to make decisions resulting in treaties regulating global standards. Of importance to the HF radar oceanographic community is ITU/WRC...


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The VENUS ocean observatory in British Columbia is featuring its CODAR HF radar station in the Winter edition of its newsletter. The article includes a link to an animated sequence of radial current vectors collected in February 2012. The animation is co-displayed with estimated tidal heights, thereby providing an indication of the influence of local tides upon surface current speed and direction. An engineering team from the University of Victoria installed the HF radar in November 2011 at the Westshore Terminal in Tsawwassen, BC, and calibrated its antenna the following month. The CODAR monitors...


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According to ocean-observing specialist Brian G. Whitehouse, the common view of the sea is based on perception, not fact. "If you want to convince yourself of this," says Whitehouse, "just ask anyone how many oceans or seas there are. Even seasoned sailors cannot answer these basic questions with confidence, and for good reason." Dr. Whitehouse, who is the president of OEA Technologies Inc, just released a new book on the subject, entitled A Sense of the Sea: Our View of the Sea and How We Got It. Whitehouse says he admires the way Rachel Carson hooked the public on oceanography with her 1951...


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OEA Technologies Incorporated and the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES), Barbados, are partnering to pursue mutual interests in the Caribbean Sea. Primary focus areas include climate change adaptation, disaster management, marine operations and coastal zone management. CERMES is located on the Cave Hill campus of the University of West Indies. Its mission is to make a significant contribution to sustainable development in the Caribbean by: (i) providing graduate students with advanced training; (ii) conducting research in the natural resource and environmental...


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OEA Technologies Inc. and Akoostix Inc. have formed a cooperative alliance in pursuit of military and homeland security applications of CODAR SeaSonde HF radar data. Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, based Akoostix specializes in marine surveillance, ocean observation, software design, signal processing and data fusion, with a focus on underwater warfare and maritime defence. OEA is a recognized leader in the provision of oceanographic consulting services and is the exclusive supplier and technical support representative for CODAR HF radars in Canada and parts of the Caribbean. “The coastal ocean observing...


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CODAR SeaSonde HF radars have been providing real-time data to agencies in several countries on both sides of the Pacific Ocean for more than a decade. This wide distribution made them well placed for detecting Japan’s March 2011 tsunami in a variety of locations and configurations. Two high-resolution (42 MHz) SeaSondes installed on Hokkaido, northernmost of Japan’s four main islands, were the closest to the earthquake epicenter and the first HF radar systems to observe the tsunami. Being close to the source, the ~40-minute period was clearly visible in the SeaSonde-observed surface current...


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The U.S. National Academy of Sciences has released its report to Congress regarding acidification in the ocean, as it pertains to climate change. The recommended strategy addresses effects of rising levels of carbon dioxide ( pCO2 ) in the atmosphere and ocean. Such changes affect the health of corals and coral reefs in the Caribbean and elsewhere. Key Findings include: - A global network of chemical and biological observations is needed to monitor changes in ocean conditions attributable to acidification. - Changes in seawater chemistry are expected to affect marine organisms that...


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Last month, the University of Victoria's VENUS program successfully completed antenna pattern measurements for its high-resolution CODAR Seasonde HF radar system. The two CODAR Seasondes were tested off the city of Vancouver overlooking the Strait of Georgia, near the Fraser River delta. The accompanying map shows sample radial surface current measurements obtained from the Westshore Terminal test site. Total surface current measurements are obtained by combining these radial surface currents with those obtained from the other test site, located near the Iona breakwater. "We are very pleased...


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