COPE Coastal ocean probe experiment Northern Oregon Coast 14-16 September 1995: Test Operations Report summary of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory activities

Operations involving Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) assets associated with a field experiment named COPE (Coastal Ocean Probe Experiment) are described. The lead organization responsible for the planning and conduct of COPE is NOAA/ETL headquartered in Boulder, Colorado. This experiment was conducted off the coast of Northern Oregon during September-October 1995. The primary measurements involve radars and other imaging microwave sensors imaging surface effects associated with natural internal waves which are abundant off the Oregon coast in the late summer and early fall. In-water, surface, and above- water environmental sensors were fielded by ETL and their contractors on the FLIP platform moored 13 miles offshore and elsewhere to characterize the environmental conditions and help interpret various features in the imagery. LLNL`s Imaging and Detection Program has taken advantage of this unique site and suite of ground-truth measurements to collect radar image data over a three-day period (14-16 September 1995) with our Airborne Experimental Test Bed (AETB) and its X-band, HH-polarization synthetic aperture radar (SAR) as a piggyback to the primary COPE data collection. This report documents test operations during this three-day data collection involving the AETB/SAR from a LLNL perspective. A total of 42 SAR images were collected at grazing angles of 8{degrees}, 20{degrees}, and 45{degrees}. From all indications during data collection, data quality appears good for about 75 percent of the passes. Strong internal waves were observed each day in calm to light wind conditions. ETL`s hillside dual-polarization X-band and Ka-band real aperture radars recorded data simultaneous with the AETB SAR. The presence of other airborne platforms and low cloud cover limited the AETB aircraft`s ability to operate at low altitude. Limited sea-truth data was collected onboard FLIP