New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts

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A computer model for forecasting ocean wave parameters at specific sites around the the New Zealand coast

A. K. LAING

New Zealand Meteorological Service Ministry of Transport P. O. Box 722, Wellington 1 New Zealand

Abstract An applications model for forecasting frequency-directional wave spectra at any appropriately specified site is described. There are two stages to the calculations. Firstly, a spectrum is calculated based on results at nearby gridpoints from an ocean wave prediction model. This is then adjusted to make the spectrum consistent with the local wind history. Verifications of the model are made at sites off Cape Egmont and Great Barrier Island, North Island, New Zealand. These give encouraging results for the shape of the frequency spectrum, with reasonable skill evident in the energetic parts of the spectrum. The significant wave heights also agree well, with the model estimates explaining two thirds of the measured variance.

Keywords water waves; wave forecasting; wind waves; New Zealand; physical oceanography; mathematical models; forecasting; spectral comparison; Maui; Great Barrier Island

New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 1985, Vol. 19: 517-533 Received 19 July 1984; accepted 10 December 1984

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (1008K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

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