High-Frequency Radar Measurements with CODAR in the Region of Nice: Improved Calibration and Performance

We report on the installation and first results of one compact oceanographic radar in the region of Nice for a long-term observation of the coastal surface currents in the northwest Mediterranean Sea. We describe the specific processing and calibration techniques that were developed at the laboratory to produce high-quality radial surface current maps. In particular, we propose an original self-calibration technique of the antenna patterns, which is based on the sole analysis of the database and does not require any shipborne transponder or other external transmitters. The relevance of the self-calibration technique and the accuracy of inverted surface currents have been assessed with the launch of 40 drifters that remained under the radar coverage for about 10 days.