Deployment & Maintenance of a High-Frequency Radar (HFR) for Ocean Surface Current Mapping - Best Practices

Sep 23, 2026

Document establishes best practices for deploying, operating, and maintaining high-frequency radar used for near-real-time ocean surface current mapping. It is based on collective operator experience with CODAR SeaSonde direction-finding HFR systems, while anticipating future expansion to other manufacturers. Coverage includes locating suitable sites, defining site and enclosure requirements, power and communications considerations, networking, antenna installation and tuning, HFR setup, software configuration, data management, and quality assurance/quality control with scheduled maintenance and revision history.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages39

Reading Time1 h 38 min

AccessFree to download

Locating an HFR

Site Requirements

Power

Communications

Climate-controlled Enclosure Specifications

HFR Enclosure

Air Conditioner

Support Equipment

Data Acquisition

Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)

Lightning Protection

Networking

Antenna

Antenna Mount

HFR Setup

Long, Medium, and Short-range Configuration

Antenna Tuning

Antenna Pattern Measurement

HFR Software

SeaSonde software configuration

SeaSonde Data Files

On site Archiving

Remote Settings for ingestion into National Network

Diagnostic reporting

Site Maintenance

Required Maintenance

Schedule for Site Visit

HFR Data Management

Radial File Requirements & Recommendations

Data Telemetry

Local Data Management/Backups

HFR Quality Assurance/Quality Control

Quality Performance Metrics

Quality Assurance (QA)

Quality Control (QC)

revision History

Appendices

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix C

DEPLOYMENT & MAINTENANCE of a High-Frequency Radar for Ocean Surface Current Mapping: BEST PRACTICES 1 FEBRUARY 2008 Preface The use of HF radar for the collection of ocean surface current information in near-real time is quickly expanding. As this national radar network grows and matures, there will be a need for a defined set of best practices for radar system operations and maintenance. In anticipation of this need, the radar operators for the Southern California Coastal Ocean Observing System ([www.sccoos.org](www.sccoos.org)) prepared this document titled “The Deployment & Maintenance of a High-Frequency Radar (HFR) for Ocean Surface Current Mapping: Best Practices”. The editors’ intentions are that this document may serve as a stimulus for developing a national set of operational best practices. The document defines a set of best practices developed from the collective experience of the operators usage of compact direction finding radar systems, specifically, the SeaSonde® family of direction-finding HFRs manufactured by CODAR Ocean Sensors, Ltd. (COS) . The best practices discussed in this document focus on the installation, operation, and maintenance of CODAR SeaSondes. Further revisions of this document are expected to expand to include other manufacturers of HF radar equipment. As with all best practice documents, there is an expectation that this will be a living document that will expand to encompass community feedback and suggestions; corrections, modifications, comments, and additions are welcome from the entire HFR community. The below list of editors may be contacted for any changes or updates. This document should be considered supplementary to manufacture provided documentation for products discussed herein. Manuals for the SeaSonde systems are provided by COS in the /Codar/SeaSonde/Docs directory on each computer they ship, as well as on their websites www.codar.com and [www.seasonde.com](www.seasonde.com). Acknowledgements Preparation of this document would not have been possible without input from the Radiowave Operators Working Group (ROWG) . Updates were funded through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) . The original funding for this document was provided through the State of California’s Coastal Ocean Currents Monitoring Program (COCMP) managed by the State Coastal Conservancy. Editor List (alphabetical order) Thomas Cook, Scripps Institution of Oceanography Lisa Hazard, Scripps Institution of Oceanography Mark Otero, Scripps Institution of Oceanography Brian Zelenke, California Polytechnic Sate University Deployment & Maintenance of a High-frequency Radar (HFR) for Ocean Surface Current Mapping: Best Practices 1. Locating an HFR .................................1 1.1 Site Requirements .....................................................1 1.1.1 Power ..........................................................2 1.1.2 Communications ................................................3 1.2 Climate-controlled Enclosure Specifications .............................3 1.2.1 HFR Enclosure ..................................................3 1.2.2 Air Conditioner .................................................4 1.3 Support Equipment ....................................................5 1.3.1 Data Acquisition ................................................5 1.3.2 Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) ..............................5 1.3.3 Lightning Protection .............................................5 1.4 Networking ..........................................................5 1.5 Antenna ..............................................................6 1.5.1 Antenna ........................................................6 1.5.2 Antenna Mount .................................................6 2. HFR Setup .........................................7 2.1 Long, Medium, and Short-range Configuration ...........................7 2.2 Antenna Tun

FAQs

What is the purpose of this best practices document for HF radar systems?

It defines operational best practices for radar system deployment, operation, and maintenance to support near-real-time ocean surface current information.

Which radar hardware family do the best practices primarily focus on?

The document focuses on installation, operation, and maintenance of CODAR SeaSondes from the SeaSonde® direction-finding HFR family.

What topics are included in the operational guidance?

Guidance covers locating suitable sites and meeting site/enclosure requirements, HFR setup and antenna tuning, software configuration, data management, site maintenance schedules, and quality assurance/quality control.

Sep 23, 2026

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