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Observation requirements for wind waves and storm surges
This page will present a set of observation requirements for the ETWS. Requirements are specified in terms of regions, parameter/product types, Accuracy (target, threshold), timeliness (Target, threshold) and spatial resolution (target, threshold)
TABLE OF REQUIREMENTS
Application | Parameter | Unit | Area | Horizontal Resolution (km) | Observing Cycle (hours) | Accuracy | Delay of Availability (hours) | Decadal Stability | Remarks | |||||
Min | Max | Min | Max | Min | Max | Units | Min | Max | ||||||
Assimilation into global wave forecast models | Significant wave height | m | Global | 60 | 5 | 24 | 1 | 10% 0.1m | 2% | % / m | 24 | 3 | ||
Dominant wave direction | degrees | Global | 60 | 5 | 24 | 1 | 22.5 | 5 | degrees | 24 | 3 | |||
Peak period | s | Global | 60 | 5 | 24 | 1 | 3 | 1 | s | 24 | 3 | |||
2D spectral wave energy density | m2 / Hz | Global | 500 | 50 | 24 | 1 | 24 | 3 | Directional accuracy requirements as for wave direction data. | |||||
Assimilation into regional wave forecast models | Significant wave height | m | Regional | 20 | 0.1 | 24 | 0.5 | 10% 0.1m | 2% | % / m | 24 | 3 | ||
Dominant wave direction | degrees | Regional | 20 | 0.1 | 24 | 0.5 | 22.5 | 5 | degrees | 24 | 3 | |||
Peak period | s | Regional | 20 | 0.1 | 24 | 0.5 | 3 | 1 | s | 24 | 3 | |||
2D spectral wave energy density | m2 / Hz | Regional | 200 | 10 | 24 | 0.5 | 24 | 3 | ||||||
Validation of wave forecast models | Significant wave height | m | Global | 1000 | 50 | 240 | 6 | 5% 0.05m | 1% | % / m | 720 | 24 | Priority is increased coverage of high quality spectral observations | |
Dominant wave direction | degrees | Global | 1000 | 50 | 240 | 6 | 22.5 | 1 | degrees | 720 | 24 | |||
Peak period | s | Global | 1000 | 50 | 240 | 6 | 1 | 0.5 | s | 720 | 24 | |||
2D spectral wave energy density | m2 / Hz | Global | 1000 | 50 | 240 | 6 | 720 | 24 | ||||||
Calibration / validation of satellite wave sensors | Significant wave height | m | Global | 1000 | 10 | 24 | 1 | 5% 0.05m | 1% | % / m | 720 | 24 | Collocation with satellite ground tracks advantageous | |
Dominant wave direction | degrees | Global | 1000 | 10 | 24 | 1 | 5 | 1 | degrees | 720 | 24 | |||
Peak period | s | Global | 1000 | 10 | 24 | 1 | 1 | 0.1 | s | 720 | 24 | |||
2D spectral wave energy density | m2 / Hz | Global | 1000 | 100 | 24 | 1 | 720 | 24 | ||||||
Ocean wave climate and variability | Significant wave height | m | Global | 1000 | 100 | 24 | 6 | 5% 0.05m | 1% | % / m | 720 | 24 | 0.01m | |
Dominant wave direction | degrees | Global | 1000 | 100 | 24 | 6 | 22.5 | 1 | degrees | 720 | 24 | 1.0 degrees | ||
Peak period | s | Global | 1000 | 100 | 24 | 6 | 1 | 0.5 | s | 720 | 24 | 0.05s | ||
2D spectral wave energy density | m2 / Hz | Global | 1000 | 100 | 24 | 6 | 720 | 24 | ||||||
Role of waves in coupling | Significant wave height | m | Global | 1000 | 10 | 6 | 0.5 | 5% 0.05m | 1% | % / m | 720 | 24 | Additional collocated measurements required. Process studies likely to require dedicated dense sampling in small regions, and sampling to higher frequency than routine monitoring. | |
Dominant wave direction | degrees | Global | 1000 | 10 | 6 | 0.5 | 22.5 | 1 | degrees | 720 | 24 |
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Peak period | s | Global | 1000 | 10 | 6 | 0.5 | 1 | 0.5 | s | 720 | 24 |
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2D spectral wave energy density | m2 / Hz | Global | 1000 | 10 | 6 | 0.5 |
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| 720 | 24 |
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Region | Parameter/ product type | Spatial Resolution (km) | Delivery timeliness (hours) | Accuracy (K) | |||
Target | Threshold | Target | Threshold | ||||
Coastal and shelf seas | |||||||
Open Ocean | |||||||
(Last Updated: 22-03-2007)