Offshore wind farms may complicate ship detection in coastal waters
What's the story
A recent study has warned that offshore wind farms can create radar blind spots and "ghost" targets. The research was conducted by Professor Liu Zunnian and his team from Qingdao Technological University, and the Yantai Communication Centre of the Beihai Navigation Security Centre under the Chinese Ministry of Transport. They found that large arrays of wind turbines could produce false "ghost" targets through reflected radar signals, complicating vessel detection in coastal waters.
Study findings
Effective radar coverage decreases
The study, published in the peer-reviewed Chinese journal Radio Engineering, found that offshore wind farms can reduce shore-based radar coverage.
At a distance of 5km, effective radar coverage was found to decrease by 6.9%, while blind spots increased by 14.9%.
This means that these wind farms could make it more difficult for radars to detect vessels at sea.
Radar interference
'Ghost' targets
The study also highlighted the issue of "ghost" targets created by offshore wind farms.
These are false signals produced when radar waves bounce off large arrays of wind turbines.
The reflected signals can be misinterpreted as vessels, making it even more difficult to accurately detect and track real marine traffic in coastal waters.