New Wave Hindcast for the Rio De La Plata Estuary

Abstract

This paper present a wave hindcast for the Río de la Plata Estuary. It was based on the version 5.16 of the numerical wave model WAVEWATCH III ®, forcing with CFSR winds and considering non-stationary water levels and currents obtained from the hydrodynamic model TELEMAC 2D. A multi-mission altimetry database processed by IFREMER was considered as the ground truth. It was taken as reference to calibrate and validate the wave model, and also to do a local validation of CFSR winds. Tuning the Γ coefficient of the JONSWAP parametrization of dissipation by bottom friction (Sbot) and the BETAMAX coefficient of the energy input by wind (Sin), it was possible to correct the large negative BIAS in significant wave height (Hs) obtained with the default configuration. The hindcast cover the period 1985–2016 providing wave parameters with a spatial resolution of 1 km and a time step of 1 hour and full spectra at a 10 km offshore distance along the coast.

Verification of Forecast Performance of a Rapid Refresh Wave Model Based on Wind–Wave Interaction Effect

“…Analysis and prediction results are greatly affected by the physical modules and parameterizations of the wave model and the quality of the input wind field. Therefore, it is necessary to closely evaluate these impacts and construct the most suitable wave model [38][39][40].…”