Coastal Data Information Program: advances in measuring and modeling wave activity, climate, and extremes

The Coastal Data Information Program (CDIP) provides wave data to the public in near real-time, maintains an operational wave model for the California coast, and is engaged in ocean wave research on a global scale. CDIP’s array of moored wave buoy stations are instrumented with Datawell Waveriders. CDIP’s recent work to improve monitoring capabilities for directional surface wave spectra, surface current, and temperature is described. This includes data quality assurance and control, real-time alerts, telemetry and dissemination information technology infrastructure and methodology, data visualization tools, and mooring and instrumentation innovation. CDIP’s goal is to maximize data reliability, availability, accuracy, and precision. Validation of commonly used wave models – operational, hindcast, and forecast – with CDIP data is automated to provide assessments of relative skills at a variety of coastal locations and wave conditions. Wave heights measured by the buoys typically exceed modeled heights during the most energetic events, such as hurricanes, nor’easters, and bomb cyclones. In a practical validation example, the global wave model used to drive CDIP’s California coastal wave forecasts was recently changed, based on comparisons against buoy data. Forecast performance has improved for swell events, which are a challenge to model accurately in the Southern California Bight.

海岸数据信息计划（Coastal Data Information Program, CDIP）面向公众提供近实时海浪数据，维护适用于加利福尼亚沿岸的业务化海浪数值模式，并在全球范围内开展海洋海浪研究工作。该机构部署的锚定海浪浮标阵列均搭载Datawell波浪浮标（Datawell Waveriders）。
CDIP近期为提升定向海面海浪谱、表层海流及海水温度监测能力所开展的工作涵盖以下方面：数据质量保障与控制、实时告警、遥测与数据分发的信息技术基础设施及方法、数据可视化工具，以及锚定装置与仪器设备的创新研发。
CDIP的目标是最大化提升数据的可靠性、可用性、准确性与精度。基于CDIP实测数据，可自动化完成对业务化、后报及预报类常用海浪模式的验证，进而针对多种沿海区域与海浪工况评估其相对性能表现。在飓风、东北风暴与爆发性气旋等强海浪事件期间，浮标实测浪高通常高于模式模拟结果。
在一项实际验证案例中，CDIP用于驱动加利福尼亚沿岸海浪预报的全球海浪模式，近期依据浮标实测数据的对比结果完成了更新。针对南加利福尼亚近岸海域此前难以精准模拟的涌浪事件，当前预报性能已得到显著改善。