Evaluation of the numerical wave model (SWAN) for wave simulation in the Black Sea

Abstract This study summaries the implementation of the SWAN model forced by the ECMWF ERA Interim dataset reanalyzed 10 m winds over the Black Sea which will be used to study the wind-wave climate and wave energy potential in the region, and its verification. The SWAN model results were compared with directional buoy measurements at three locations along the north and south coasts of the Black Sea, parametric model results based on the JONSWAP growth relations, and the results of previous studies. The SWAN model has been applied in a third generation and non-stationary mode with spherical coordinates. The linear and exponential growth from wind input, depth-induced wave breaking, bottom friction, whitecapping, four-wave (for deep water) and triad-wave (for shallow water) nonlinear interactions have been activated in the simulations. The results of this study indicate that agreement between simulated and observed wave parameters is satisfactory and it is slightly more accurate than the results of the previous studies. However, it still has lower estimates for the maximum values of both wave parameters. These lower estimates are probably due to too low wind speeds in the applied ECMWF wind fields, which is probably caused by orographic effects, and due to the relatively course resolution in time and space of the ECMWF (ERA-Interim) wind fields for the Black Sea.

[1]  W. Pierson,et al.  A proposed spectral form for fully developed wind seas based on the similarity theory of S , 1964 .

[2]  J. A. Battjes,et al.  Verification of Kimura’s Theory for Wave Group Statistics , 1984 .

[3]  T. Barnett,et al.  Measurements of wind-wave growth and swell decay during the Joint North Sea Wave Project (JONSWAP) , 1973 .

[4]  Kimmo K. Kahma,et al.  Reconciling Discrepancies in the Observed Growth of Wind-generated Waves , 1992 .

[5]  Klaus Hasselmann,et al.  On the spectral dissipation of ocean waves due to white capping , 1974 .

[6]  I. Young,et al.  A review of the central role of nonlinear interactions in wind—wave evolution , 1993, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A: Physical and Engineering Sciences.

[7]  L. Cavaleri,et al.  Wind wave prediction in shallow water: Theory and applications , 1981 .

[8]  Luigi Cavaleri,et al.  Assessment of Wind Quality for Oceanographic Modelling in Semi-Enclosed Basins , 2005 .

[9]  Amir Etemad-Shahidi,et al.  Wave modeling and extreme value analysis off the northern coast of the Persian Gulf , 2010 .

[10]  Hendrik L. Tolman,et al.  A Third-Generation Model for Wind Waves on Slowly Varying, Unsteady, and Inhomogeneous Depths and Currents , 1991 .

[11]  Van der Westhuysen.  The application of the numerical wind wave model SWAN to a selected field case on the South African coast , 2002 .

[12]  Marcel Zijlema,et al.  WAVE PHYSICS IN A TIDAL INLET , 2009 .

[13]  Amir Etemad-Shahidi,et al.  Application of two numerical models for wave hindcasting in Lake Erie , 2007 .

[14]  J. Bidlot,et al.  Intercomparison of the Performance of Operational Ocean Wave Forecasting Systems with Buoy Data , 2002 .

[15]  Ying Poon,et al.  SPECTRAL WAVE ATTENUATION BY BOTTOM FRICTION: THEORY , 1988 .

[16]  A. Shahidi,et al.  WAVE PARAMETER HINDCASTING IN A LAKE USING THE SWAN MODEL , 2009 .

[17]  N. Booij,et al.  A third-generation wave model for coastal regions-1 , 1999 .

[18]  David W. Wang,et al.  Investigation of Wave Growth and Decay in the SWAN Model: Three Regional-Scale Applications , 2003 .

[19]  Seyed Jamshid Mousavi,et al.  APPLICATION OF FUZZY INFERENCE SYSTEM IN THE PREDICTION OF WAVE PARAMETERS , 2005 .

[20]  K. Hasselmann,et al.  On the Existence of a Fully Developed Wind-Sea Spectrum , 1984 .

[21]  A. Sterl,et al.  Intercomparison of Different Wind–Wave Reanalyses , 2004 .

[22]  Liliana Rusu,et al.  APPLICATION OF NUMERICAL MODELS TO EVALUATE OIL SPILLS PROPAGATION IN THE COASTAL ENVIRONMENT OF THE BLACK SEA , 2010 .

[23]  Marcel Zijlema,et al.  On convergence behaviour and numerical accuracy in stationary SWAN simulations of nearshore wind wave spectra , 2005 .

[24]  Mehmet Özger,et al.  Triple diagram method for the prediction of wave height and period , 2007 .

[25]  J. Thepaut,et al.  The ERA‐Interim reanalysis: configuration and performance of the data assimilation system , 2011 .

[26]  C. Guedes Soares,et al.  Validation of the WAMC4 wave model for the Black Sea , 2008 .

[27]  J. Collins.  Prediction of shallow‐water spectra , 1972 .

[28]  Luigi Cavaleri,et al.  Wave Modeling—Missing the Peaks , 2009 .

[29]  K. Hasselmann,et al.  Computations and Parameterizations of the Nonlinear Energy Transfer in a Gravity-Wave Specturm. Part II: Parameterizations of the Nonlinear Energy Transfer for Application in Wave Models , 1985 .

[30]  E. Rogers,et al.  Semiempirical Dissipation Source Functions for Ocean Waves. Part I: Definition, Calibration, and Validation , 2009, 0907.4240.

[31]  Dominic E. Reeve,et al.  Coastal Engineering: Processes, Theory and Design Practice , 2004 .

[32]  B. W. Wilson,et al.  Numerical prediction of ocean waves in the North Atlantic for December, 1959 , 1965 .

[33]  P. Janssen.  Quasi-linear Theory of Wind-Wave Generation Applied to Wave Forecasting , 1991 .

[34]  Liliana Rusu,et al.  Modelling wind waves in the romanian coastal environment , 2010 .

[35]  Michael L. Banner,et al.  The NOPP operational wave model improvement project , 2013 .

[36]  J. A. Battjes,et al.  Spectral modeling of wave breaking: Application to Boussinesq equations , 1996 .

[37]  Fabrice Ardhuin,et al.  Swell and Slanting-Fetch Effects on Wind Wave Growth , 2007 .

[38]  J. A. Battjes,et al.  ENERGY LOSS AND SET-UP DUE TO BREAKING OF RANDOM WAVES , 1978 .

[39]  Y. Eldeberky,et al.  Nonlinear transformation of wave spectra in the nearshore , 1996 .

[40]  N. Booij,et al.  A SPECTRAL MODEL FOR WAVES IN THE NEAR SHORE ZONE , 1995 .

[41]  Lawrence P. Sanford,et al.  Wave measurement and modeling in Chesapeake Bay , 2002 .

[42]  Eugen Rusu,et al.  Wave energy assessments in the Black Sea , 2009 .

[43]  Peter A. E. M. Janssen,et al.  Wave-induced stress and the drag of air flow over sea waves , 1989 .

[44]  A. Orfila,et al.  Assessment of wind models around the Balearic Islands for operational wave forecast , 2012 .

[45]  G. Matheron.  Principles of geostatistics , 1963 .

[46]  J. Miles.  On the generation of surface waves by shear flows , 1957, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[47]  O. Phillips.  On the generation of waves by turbulent wind , 1957, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[48]  N. Booij,et al.  A Spectral Wave Model for the Coastal Zone , 1994 .

[49]  Luigi Cavaleri,et al.  Wave Modelling - The State of the Art , 2007 .

[50]  N. Booij,et al.  A third‐generation wave model for coastal regions: 2. Verification , 1999 .

[51]  Eugen Rusu,et al.  Modelling of wave–current interactions at the mouths of the Danube , 2010 .