Real Time Wave Forecasting Using Wind Time History and Genetic Programming

Abstract

The significant wave height and average wave period form an essential input for operational activities in ocean and coastal areas. Such information is important in issuing appropriate warnings to people planning any construction or instillation works in the oceanic environment. Many countries over the world routinely collect wave and wind data through a network of wave rider buoys. The data collecting agencies transmit the resulting information online to their registered users through an internet or a web-based system. Operational wave forecasts in addition to the measured data are also made and supplied online to the users. This paper discusses operational wave forecasting in real time mode at locations where wind rather than wave data are continuously recorded. It is based on the time series modeling and incorporates an artificial intelligence technique of genetic programming. The significant wave height and average wave period values are forecasted over a period of 96 hr in future from the observations of wind speed and directions extending to a similar time scale in the past. Wind measurements made by floating buoys at eight different locations around India over a period varying from 1.5 yr to 9.0 yr were considered. The platform of Matlab and C++ was used to develop a graphical user interface that will extend an internet based user-friendly access of the forecasts to any registered user of the data dissemination authority.