Performance of the different parameterization of depth-induced breaking during a typhoon

Abstract

This study investigates typhoon-induced wave dynamics using the WAVEWATCH-III (WW3) model, with a focus on evaluating eight depth-induced wave breaking parameterizations under typhoon conditions: BJ78, NE87, RU03, GO10, SA15, LS17, CH19, and TG83. The wind forcing field for WW3 is constructed by assimilating wind products from Haiyang-2 (HY-2), the Soil Moisture Active–Passive (SMAP) radiometer and the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer-2 (AMSR2). The model simulated waves during Typhoons Lekima (2019) and Yagi (2024) incorporating sea surface current speed and sea surface level data from the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS). Validation against HY-2B satellite significant wave height (SWH) measurements demonstrates that the LS17 outperforms other schemes in shallow coastal regions (< 200 m water depth), achieving optimal metric with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.5109 m and a correlation coefficient (Cor) of 0.8748. Comparison with buoy reveals maximum SWH discrepancy of 0.3 m between LS17 and BJ78 in shallow waters (i.e., 13 m water depth). This study evaluates the performance of two wave-breaking parameterizations (BJ78 and LS17) in WW3 simulations against HY-2 observations, with a focus on Super Typhoon Yagi (2024). Results indicate that both schemes perform comparably in deep waters (200–80 m depth), showing minimal deviations (∼0.5 m). However, near the coast (80–0 m), BJ78 exhibits significant underestimation (−2 m bias), while LS17 maintains higher accuracy. The superior performance of LS17 in shallow waters underscores the critical role of wave-breaking parameterization selection for reliable nearshore wave modeling, especially during extreme events such as typhoons.