Swell-Forecast.com - European SURF forecasting

WAVEFINDER Help: How to read Buoy information...

What is WAVEFINDER?

WAVEFINDER buoy reports catch the latest available information from different ocean buoy systems, like INM, NOAA, CSIC, Meteo France, etc. With this service you will have real-time information about sea state in different areas, from the Mediterranean sea, to the Cantabrian coast and Canary Islands.

Please note that the value Hs (Wave's height) is measured by buoys in the open sea, so it usually does not correspond with the actual size of the waves in your spot (usually it is significantly bigger). In this sense, the Peak Period (Tp) will give you a better approach of what kind of waves are coming (Windsea or a clean swell).

Only experience will teach you how to "read" data reported by buoys and translate it into your local conditions.

Is WAVEFINDER a free service?

Yes! and it will remain free in the future. Buoy data is public information available in the Internet at no cost, so although developing of the service has taken time and effort, we do not want profit from it.

Can I access WAVEFINDER from my mobile phone or PDA?

Yes! In fact, WAVEFINDER has been developed mainly to be accessed in mobility...you do not need to have a PC at hand, just a GPRS phone with Internet Browser, that's all. We have been testing it with mobile phones from Nokia, Motorola, Blackberry and PDA's like HP-Compaq, Qtek, etc, and it works fine. The amount of data transfered to you mobile device is very low (only text) so you will not pay a lot for downloaded data.

What does it mean Hs, Tp, Dirp...and so on?

Depending on the buoy, the set of parameters reported are slightly different. But there are a few in common for all of them and of great importance for us:

Hs: Means Significant Wave Height. that is, wave's height.

Tp: this is the Peak Wave Period, that is, the wave period on the direction of maximum wave energy.