Estimation of Effective Range of HFR Data and Analysis of M 2 Tidal Current Characteristics in the Jeju Strait

Abstract

The effective range of surface current data observed by high-frequency radar (HFR) operated in the northern coastal area of Jeju Island by Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology was estimated and the distribution and variability of the M2 tidal current of the Jeju Strait was analyzed. To evaluate the HFR data, the M2 tidal current corrected from 25 hours current data observed by the Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Agency (KHOA) was compared with the M2 tidal current in the Jeju Strait analyzed from the surface currents of HFR. The reliability of HFR data was confirmed by analyzing the characteristics of the tide components of these two data sets, and the effective range of HFR data was estimated through temporal and spatial analysis. The observation periods of HFR used in the analysis were from 2012 to 2014, and it was confirmed that there is a difference in the effective range of HFR data according to the observation time. During the analysis periods, the difference between the M2 current ellipses from the data of KHOA and the HFR was greater in the eastern than in the western part of the Jeju Strait, and represented a high reliability in the western and central parts of the Jeju Strait. The tidal current of the Jeju Strait analyzed using the HFR data revealed a seasonal variability a relatively weak in summer and a strong in winter, about a 17% fluctuations between the summer and winter based on the length of the semi-major axis of tidal ellipse. Appraisals and results of regarding the characteristics and seasonal variability of the M2 tidal current in the Jeju Strait using HFR data have not been previously reported, so the results of this study are considered meaningful.