Storm Surges as Seen by Coastal and Spaceborne Radars: Case Studies in British Columbia

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how combined ground-based and spaceborne radar data can effectively observe and analyze storm surges in coastal regions, using case studies from British Columbia to enhance understanding of rapid sea level changes.

Contribution

It presents a novel integration of multiple radar and tide gauge data sources to study storm surges, highlighting the potential of satellite radar in coastal hazard monitoring.

Findings

Satellite radar complements ground-based measurements.

Storm surges can be effectively observed with combined radar data.

Case studies demonstrate the utility of spaceborne radar in coastal events.

Abstract

Short-term sea level fluctuations prompted by abrupt atmospheric changes can be hazardous phenomena for coastal regions. We report on two such recent storm surges that occurred in 2020 on the shores of British Columbia, Canada. A rare concordance of ground-based and spaceborne sensors made it possible to observe these events with a variety of instruments : (1) a coastal oceanographic radar; (2) the synthetic aperture radar onboard satellite Sentinel-1B; and (3) a network of shoreside tide gauges. In the light of these case studies we show how satellite-based radar data can be used to complement the observation and interpretation of ground-based measurements in the context of ``tsunami-like'' sea level oscillations.