CODAR meets Orsted Block Island Windfarm

April 6, 2021

Dr. Hugh Roarty from Rutgers University along with colleagues Dr. Anthony Kirincich and Ms. Eve Cinquino from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (Figure 1) installed a 13 MHz CODAR SeaSonde to collect radar data in the vicinity of the Orsted Block Island Wind Farm .  The radar was installed with help from the Galilee Beach Club providing the real estate and power for the equipment.  Special thanks to Tracy Baran and David Field from the Beach Club who assisted with the permissions and installation.  The system will run for one month collecting radar and surface current data in the presence of 5 wind turbines (Figure 2).  This will allow CODAR Ocean Sensors to test their mitigation algorithms to minimize the interference from offshore wind turbines on coastal radars.  This work was funded by a grant from the NOAA IOOS Ocean Technology Transition program.