An Inner-Shelf Wave Forecasting System for the U.S. Pacific Northwest

Abstract An operational inner-shelf wave forecasting system was implemented for the Oregon and southwest Washington coast in the U.S. Pacific Northwest (PNW). High-resolution wave forecasts are useful for navigational planning, identifying wave energy resources, providing information for site-specific coastal flood models, and having an informed recreational beach user group, among other things. This forecasting model is run once a day at 1200 UTC producing 84-h forecasts. A series of nested grids with increasing resolution shoreward are implemented to achieve a 30-arc-second resolution at the shelf level. This resolution is significantly higher than what the current operational models produce, thus improving the ability to quantify the alongshore variations of wave conditions on the PNW coast. Normalized root-mean-squared errors in significant wave height and mean wave period range from 0.13 to 0.24 and from 0.13 to 0.26, respectively. Visualization of the forecasts is made available online and is presently being used by recreational beach users and the scientific community. A series of simulations, taking advantage of having a validated shelf-scale numerical wave model, suggests that neither dissipation due to bottom friction nor wind generation is important in the region at this scale for wave forecasting and hindcasting when considering bulk parameters as opposed to the processes of refraction and shoaling. The Astoria and McArthur Canyons; the Stonewall, Perpetua, and Heceta Banks; and Cape Blanco are significant bathymetric features that are shown to be capable of producing alongshore variability of wave heights on the shelf.

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NEARSHORE WAVE PREDICTIONS ALONG THE OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON COAST

Coastal Engineering Proceedings ◽

10.9753/icce.v33.waves.52 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 1 (33) ◽

pp. 52

Author(s):

Gabriel García-Medina ◽

H. Tuba Özkan-Haller ◽

Peter Ruggiero

Keyword(s):

Pacific Northwest ◽

Wave Model ◽

The Public ◽

The Us ◽

Southwest Region ◽

Forecasting System ◽

Northwest Region ◽

Wave Forecasting ◽

Ocean Observing ◽

Observing Systems

A nearshore wave forecasting system was implemented to elevate the ocean information resources in the US Pacific Northwest region. This implementation brings the US State of Oregon and the Southwest region of the state of Washington to the same level of prediction as the neighboring state of California and other regions of the country. It was achieved using the Wavewatch III numerical wave model, which was validated in intermediate to shallow waters. The forecasting system provides data at a 30 arc-second resolution from the shelf break up to a depth of 20 meters. The data is distributed to the public at no cost as part of a greater initiative put together by the Networked Association of Ocean Observing Systems. Information generated by this implementation is presently being used to provide boundary conditions to localized applications in the region as well as to beach users.

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The Operational Implementation of a Great Lakes Wave Forecasting System at NOAA/NCEP*

Weather and Forecasting ◽

10.1175/waf-d-12-00049.1 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 29 (6) ◽

pp. 1473-1497 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Jose-Henrique G. M. Alves ◽

Arun Chawla ◽

Hendrik L. Tolman ◽

David Schwab ◽

Gregory Lang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Great Lakes ◽

Mesoscale Model ◽

Wrf Model ◽

Wave Model ◽

Environmental Research ◽

New Wave ◽

Wavewatch Iii ◽

Wave Heights ◽

Forecasting System ◽

Wave Forecasting

Abstract The development of a Great Lakes wave forecasting system at NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) is described. The system is an implementation of the WAVEWATCH III model, forced with atmospheric data from NCEP’s regional Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model [the North American Mesoscale Model (NAM)] and the National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD). Reviews are made of previous Great Lakes wave modeling efforts. The development history of NCEP’s Great Lakes wave forecasting system is presented. A performance assessment is made of model wind speeds, as well as wave heights and periods, relative to National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) measurements. Performance comparisons are made relative to NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL) wave prediction system. Results show that 1- and 2-day forecasts from NCEP have good skill in predicting wave heights and periods. NCEP’s system provides a better representation of measured wave periods, relative to the GLERL model in most conditions. Wave heights during storms, however, are consistently underestimated by NCEP’s current operational system, whereas the GLERL model provides close agreement with observations. Research efforts to develop new wave-growth parameterizations and overcome this limitation have led to upgrades to the WAVEWATCH III model, scheduled to become operational at NCEP in 2013. Results are presented from numerical experiments made with the new wave-model physics, showing significant improvements to the skill of NCEP’s Great Lakes wave forecasting system in predicting storm wave heights.

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REVISIONS TO HURRICANE DESIGN WAVE PRACTICES

Coastal Engineering Proceedings ◽

10.9753/icce.v13.7 ◽

1972 ◽

Vol 1 (13) ◽

pp. 7 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Charles L. Bretschneider

Keyword(s):

Deep Water ◽

Water Wave ◽

Wave Model ◽

Wind Fields ◽

Design Storm ◽

The Past ◽

Hurricane Wind ◽

Deep Water Wave ◽

Wave Forecasting ◽

The U.S

The 1959 paper "Hurricane Design Wave Practices" (ref. 1) has been widely used in the past for obtaining design wave criteria. Additional wave data and revisions in wave forecasting procedures, including computing techniques, ideas and experience, make it possible to bring these techniques up to date. This paper should be considered also as an extension of the paper "A Non- Dimensional Hurricane Wave Model" (ref. 2) as well as revisions to the 1959 paper (ref. 1). Graphs, formulae and procedures are presented making it possible to calculate the entire deep water wave fields from model hurricane wind fields. The revisions have been applied to the U.S. East and Gulf coasts past historical hurricanes and also to the U.S. Weather Service standard project and probable maximum hurricanes for deep water conditions. The results of these calculations are presented in figures and tables and can serve as inputs for particular locations to calculate design storm surge and design wave criteria over the continental shelf to the coast line, making use of the material in the references listed at the end of this paper.

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Erosional response to northward-propagating crustal thickening in the coastal ranges of the U.S. Pacific Northwest

American Journal of Science ◽

10.2475/11.2013.01 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 313 (8) ◽

pp. 790-806 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

G. Balco ◽

N. Finnegan ◽

A. Gendaszek ◽

J. O. H. Stone ◽

N. Thompson

Keyword(s):

Pacific Northwest ◽

Crustal Thickening ◽

The U.S

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The quality of care delivered to Parkinson's disease patients in the U.S. Pacific Northwest Veterans Health System

BMC Neurology ◽

10.1186/1471-2377-6-26 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Kari Swarztrauber ◽

Eric Graf ◽

Eric Cheng

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Quality Of Care ◽

Health System ◽

Pacific Northwest ◽

Veterans Health ◽

The U.S

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Estimating a global demand model for soybean traffic through the Panama Canal

Journal of Shipping and Trade ◽

10.1186/s41072-021-00086-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Javier Ho ◽

Paul Bernal

Keyword(s):

Pacific Northwest ◽

Least Square ◽

Panama Canal ◽

Demand Model ◽

Department Of Agriculture ◽

Explanatory Variables ◽

Ordinary Least Square ◽

Global Demand ◽

Alternative Routes ◽

The U.S

AbstractThis study attempts to fit a global demand model for soybean traffic through the Panama Canal using Ordinary Least Square. Most of the soybean cargo through the interoceanic waterway is loaded on the U.S. Gulf and East Coast ports -mainly destined to East Asia, especially China-, and represented about 34% of total Panama Canal grain traffic between fiscal years 2010–19. To estimate the global demand model for soybean traffic, we are considering explanatory variables such as effective toll rates through the Panama Canal, U.S. Gulf- Asia and U.S. Pacific Northwest- Asia freight rates, Baltic Dry Index, bunker costs, soybean export inspections from the U.S. Gulf and Pacific Northwest, U.S. Gulf soybean basis levels, Brazil’s soybean exports and average U.S. dollar index. As part of the research, we are pursuing the estimation of the toll rate elasticity of vessels transporting soybeans via the Panama Canal. Data come mostly from several U.S. Department of Agriculture sources, Brazil’s Secretariat of Foreign Trade (SECEX) and from Panama Canal transit information. Finally, after estimation of the global demand model for soybean traffic, we will discuss the implications for future soybean traffic through the waterway, evaluating alternative routes and sources for this trade.

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