Great Lakes wave heights

[Guest]

Significant wave height is an average of the largest 33% of waves. Significant wave height has been found found to correlate closely to visual estimates of wave heights. Just keep in mind that it's a standardized distribution and on average, 15% of waves will exceed the significant wave heights and on occasion (about every hour), one can expect a wave nearly twice the significant wave height.

Weather buoys are removed from the Great Lakes this time of year because they can break free from their moorings or be damaged by severe weather or ice.

As Mr. Link said, the Great Lakes Coastal Forecast System provides a Hindcast and Nowcast of wave heights.

- Brian

[Mr Link]

They are still shown at the National data buoy center. But only a few buoys are fitted with instrumentation (accelerometers I believe) to measure wave heights. And most of those buoys are removed for the winter months to avoid ice damage. So they show up as red in the main map. It appears that only one buoy is currently in the water that can measure waves in Lake Superior: a Canadian buoy off Patterson Island.

To view wave forecasts models, you can go to https://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/glcfs/ and click on waves, either for the Lakes, or for each lake. It will bring up a map showing the past 48 hours if wave height predictions, as well as a 120 hour forecast. Both can be viewed as animations. But keep in mind that these are predictions, not actual measurements.

[srh7934]

At one time many of the buoys of NOAA’s “National Data Buoy Center” reported significant wave heights. Buoys from around the world are listed (noaa.gov). I personally enjoy viewing wave heights on the lakes, especially Lake Superior at this time of year but, in recent times significant wave height is no longer reported. Is there another reference location to view this information?