Coastal high-frequency radars in the Mediterranean - Part 1: Status of operations and a framework for future development

Due to the semi-enclosed nature of the Mediterranean Sea, natural disasters and anthropogenic activities impose stronger pressures on its coastal ecosystems than in any other sea of the world. With the aim of responding adequately to science priorities and societal challenges, littoral waters must be effectively monitored with high-frequency radar (HFR) systems. This land-based remote sensing technology can provide, in near-real time, fine-resolution maps of the surface circulation over broad coastal areas, along with reliable directional wave and wind information. The main goal of this work is to showcase the current status of the Mediterranean HFR network and the future roadmap for orchestrated actions. Ongoing collaborative efforts and recent progress of this regional alliance are not only described but also connected with other European initiatives and global frameworks, highlighting the advantages of this cost-effective instrument for the multi-parameter monitoring of the sea state. Coordinated endeavors between HFR operators from different multi-disciplinary institutions are mandatory to reach a mature stage at both national and regional levels, striving to do the following: (i) harmonize deployment and maintenance practices; (ii) standardize data, metadata, and quality control procedures; (iii) centralize data management, visualization, and access platforms; and (iv) develop practical applications of societal benefit that can be used for strategic planning and informed decision-making in the Mediterranean marine environment. Such fit-for-purpose applications can serve for search and rescue operations, safe vessel navigation, tracking of marine pollutants, the monitoring of extreme events, the investigation of transport processes, and the connectivity between offshore waters and coastal ecosystems. Finally, future prospects within the Mediterranean framework are discussed along with a wealth of socioeconomic, technical, and scientific challenges to be faced during the implementation of this integrated HFR regional network

Coastal high-frequency radars in the Mediterranean - Part 2: Applications in support of science priorities and societal needs

The Mediterranean Sea is a prominent climate-change hot spot, with many socioeconomically vital coastal areas being the most vulnerable targets for maritime safety, diverse met-ocean hazards and marine pollution. Providing an unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution at wide coastal areas, high-frequency radars (HFRs) have been steadily gaining recognition as an effective land-based remote sensing technology for continuous monitoring of the surface circulation, increasingly waves and occasionally winds. HFR measurements have boosted the thorough scientific knowledge of coastal processes, also fostering a broad range of applications, which has promoted their integration in coastal ocean observing systems worldwide, with more than half of the European sites located in the Mediterranean coastal areas. In this work, we present a review of existing HFR data multidisciplinary science-based applications in the Mediterranean Sea, primarily focused on meeting end-user and science-driven requirements, addressing regional challenges in three main topics: (i) maritime safety, (ii) extreme hazards and (iii) environmental transport process. Additionally, the HFR observing and monitoring regional capabilities in the Mediterranean coastal areas required to underpin the underlying science and the further development of applications are also analyzed. The outcome of this assessment has allowed us to provide a set of recommendations for future improvement prospects to maximize the contribution to extending science-based HFR products into societally relevant downstream services to support blue growth in the Mediterranean coastal areas, helping to meet the UN's Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development and the EU's Green Deal goals

Wave modeling with unstructured mesh for hindcast, forecast and wave hazard applications in the Mediterranean Sea

A wave model based on an unstructured grid in the Mediterranean Sea is presented, which provides high-resolution in near-shore regions using the wave model WAVEWATCH III v6.07. The hindcast comprises hourly time series of integrated wave parameters and 2D directional spectra in selected locations, from January 1st 1979 until December 31st 2020, whereas a daily forecast simulation provides predictions for the following 5 days. The hindcast is validated against buoys and several satellite missions. Results show that the model provides a good performance for storm events and mean conditions in the Mediterranean Sea with normalized mean absolute error (NMAE) lower than 15% in 70% of the basin, spatial index of agreement (d1) above 0.6, and the model under/overestimations are below 35% compared with in-situ data. Next, a methodology for coastal risk assessment is developed, leveraging the detailed information provided by the model in shallow waters and relying on a Storm Power Index (SPI), Coastal Vulnerability Index (CVI) and Risk Index (RI). The methodology is applied to the coast of Liguria, Italy, as a region with a high social, economical and touristic value which has experienced catastrophic coastal flooding episodes in recent years. Results of risk assessment were presented for the storm event of October 2018, known to have caused severe damages in the Ligurian coastline. The results provide a SPI of 3 and 5 at the beginning and peak of the storm, respectively, leading to RI of 3–5 depending on the characteristics and socioeconomic importance of the coastal stretches. Therefore, it is concluded that the methodology estimates the risk in an efficient and adequate way for its implementation in an operational risk forecasting system

Breakdown of Near-Surface Sea Current from High-Frequency Radar Data

To assess the contribution of wind drag and Stokes drift on the near-surface circulation, a methodology to isolate the geostrophic surface current from high-frequency radar data is developed. The methodology performs a joint analysis utilizing wind field and in situ surface currents along with an unsupervised neuronal network. The isolation method seems robust in the light of comparisons with satellite altimeter data, presenting a similar time variability and providing more spatial detail of the currents in the coastal region. Results show that the wind-induced current is around 2.1% the wind speed and deflected from the wind direction in the range [18°, 23°], whereas classical literature suggests higher values. The wave-induced currents can represent more than 13% of the ageostrophic current component as function of the wind speed, suggesting that the Stokes drift needs to be analyzed as an independent term when studying surface sea currents in the coastal zones. The methodology and results presented here could be extended worldwide, as complementary information to improve satellite-derived surface currents in the coastal regions by including the local physical processes recorded by high-frequency radar systems. The assessment of the wave and wind-induced currents have important applications on Lagrangian transport studies