ERS SAR observations of the Korean coastal waters

The processes of regional scales in the East Korean coastal waters were investigated by analysis of the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images taken by the European Research Satellites ERS-1, ERS-2 and Envisat. More than 500 quick look frames taken in 1991-2003 were examined to detect the frames with clearly surface expressions of oceanic phenomena. 26 ERS-1/2 SAR and 11 Envisat wide swath Advanced SAR (ASAR) frames were selected and obtained from the European Space Agency in a form of the precision high-resolution images. The following oceanic phenomena and processes were evident in the radar imagery through the Korean costal waters: fronts, currents, eddies, internal waves, island and ship wakes, oil pollution, etc. They manifested themselves in the field of sea surface roughness, their scale ranged from several tens meters to about 100 km. The most common morphology of these phenomena was a series of contrast dark or light curvilinear lines and bands. The joint analysis of the discussed SAR images with other satellite and in situ data supported and enhanced our interpretation of SAR signatures.