Fanti, V., Ferreira, Ó., Kümmerer, V., Loureiro, C. (2023). Improved estimates of extreme wave conditions in coastal areas from calibrated global reanalyses. Communications Earth & Environment, 4, 151.

The analysis of extreme wave conditions is crucial for understanding and mitigating coastal hazards. As global wave reanalyses allow to extend the evaluation of wave conditions to periods and locations not covered by in-situ measurements, their direct use is common. However, in coastal areas, the accuracy of global reanalyses is lower, particularly for extreme waves. Here we compare two leading global wave reanalyses against 326 coastal buoys, demonstrating that both reanalyses consistently underestimate significant wave height, 50-year return period and mean wave period in most coastal locations around the world. Different calibration methods applied to improve the modelled extreme waves, resulting in a 53% reduction in the underestimation of extreme wave heights. Importantly, the 50-year return period for significant wave height is improved on average by 55%. Extreme wave statistics determined for coastal areas directly from global wave reanalyses require careful consideration, with calibration largely reducing uncertainty and improving confidence.

https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-023-00819-0

O CIMA é financiado pela Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) através da referência UIDP/00350/2020, com sede no Campus Universitário de Gambelas, Edifício 7,  8005-139 FARO PORTUGAL. Tel: 351 289 244 434, 351 289 800 100; E-mail: cima@ualg.pt (+ info)
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O CIMA é financiado pela Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) através da referência UIDP/00350/2020, com sede no Campus Universitário de Gambelas, Edifício 7,  8005-139 FARO PORTUGAL. Tel: 351 289 244 434, 351 289 800 100; E-mail: cima@ualg.pt
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