Coffs Harbour HF Ocean Radar: Delayed Mode Wind and Surface Currents

IMOS data from a WERA phased array radar system measuring surface currents, wind direction, and significant wave height off the New South Wales coast. The Coffs Harbour site is located where the narrow, swift East Australian Current begins to separate from the coast, influencing regional marine connectivity. Data is provided by the Australian Ocean Data Network and was last updated in July 2026.

Use Cases

• Modeling coastal and continental shelf water connectivity based on surface current measurements.
• Analyzing wind patterns and their influence on ocean upwelling and nutrient transport.
• Studying the physical and biological connectivity driven by the East Australian Current structure.
• Assessing anthropogenic impacts on coastal ocean water quality using ocean radar data.

Strengths

• Data is collected by a WERA phased array system with a maximum range of 100 km.
• The radar operates at a specific frequency of 13.920 MHz with a 100 KHz bandwidth.
• The site location is precisely described at Red Rock (-23.942 S, 151.371 E) and North Nambucca (-24.111 S, 152.713 E).

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Data collected from a WERA phased array HF ocean radar system.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-07-10 00:17:28.201771; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Ocean region off Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia, within a 100 km radar range.