New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts

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Hindcasting wave spectra in finite-depth waters

A.K.LAING

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

Abstract A model is described for hindcasting or forecasting waves in finite-depth waters. The model is particularly applicable to coastal sites where the water is depth-limited. The wave energy density spectrum is modelled in the frequency-directional domain. For each spectral component a ray is defined along which wave energy propagates to reach the site. For sites exposed to the open ocean a background spectral wave model is required to provide input to the ray endpoints. Further growth and dissipation is then effected along the rays according to the local wind and water depth. The model was used to hindcast wave spectra over a period of 9 months for a site in the Canterbury Bight, New 2^ealand. The results were compared with measurements from a Wavcridcr buoy at the site. The model succeeds in explaining about 40% of the variance in measured significant wave heights. However, the present application is handicapped by errors inherent in the background spectral model and in specifying the local wind.

Keywords waves; swell; wave forecast; wave hindcast; numerical wave models; wave spectra; Canterbury Bight; refraction; shoaling; wave spectrum; water waves; wind wave

New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 1990, Vol. 24: 541-553 Crown copyright 1990
Received 5 March 1990; accepted 9 July 1990

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (946K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

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