Mouth of the Columbia River Buoy System Julie

Mouth of the Columbia River Buoy System Julie Thomas Program Manager, CDIP Executive Director, SCCOOS Ilwaco, WA June 18, 2009

COASTAL DATA INFORMATION PROGRAM • Based at SIO • 39 Wave Stations • 14 People • $2. 5 M+ / year budget • Funded by: CDBW USACE (SCCOOS BEACON ONR SD Foundation…) CDIP Mission • Develop US nearshore wave climatology for more rational design decisions

OUTLINE 1. Overview of the Coastal Data Information Program (CDIP) 2. Overview of the Datawell Wave Buoys, moorings and deployment vessels. 3. Examples of existing customized Port products: - Los Angeles/Long Beach – San Pedro Channel - San Francisco 4. Mouth of the Columbia River – location 5. Funding 6. Examples of CDIP Products 7. Reliability Statistics

CDIP Wave Buoys Near Ports and Harbors How important is consistency for The inter and intra-state maritime community? Each port has its own unique Set of challenges…no one Template fits all! Port/Harbor buoys Other CDIP wave buoys

Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) • Supports Science, Engineering, and Marine Safety • Sponsored by NOAA and USACE • Plan Approved by IOOS Program Office, March 2009 • Strategic placement of wave buoys for integration with global and local wave models. • High wave data quality standards

DATAWELL Directional Wave Buoy -Constructed in the Netherlands, robust, reliable. Considered as the base system for wave buoy comparisons in the International Community (JCOMM) -Centimeter accuracy in the wave height, 5 degrees resolution for wave direction. -Data are transmitted via iridium satellite. (full xyz and spectra are transmitted). All raw data are stored on board. -- All data are disseminated on the CDIP Website in near real-time. The data update @ 30 minutes. -The parameter (Hs, Tp, Dp, SST ) and spectral data are transmitted to NDBC @ hour. Via AWIPS, data are transmitted to the NWS Office. - Alert system if buoy breaks loose.

MOORING SYSTEM - 30 Compliant mooring System designed to maximize the frequency response of the buoy Instrumentation. m bungee that allows for surface following buoy. Bungee stretches to 4 x its length - Polypropolene line - 1400 lbs of large anchor chain

Gray’s Harbor Installation 1981 – present Max Hs = 12 m (2/06)

Umpqua (1/06) Max Hs = 10. 3 m (1/07) Cape Mendocino (3/99) Max Hs = 9. 98 m (12/08)

The Coastal Wave Network Template • Regional waves are monitored by a pair of Outer & Inner Shelf Buoys. outer inner Shelf Break Harbor SHELF CROSS-SECTION PLAN VIEW

The Coastal Wave Network Template • Outer/Inner wave buoys are placed at wave model boundaries for assimilation and validation. Global Model Shelf Model Local Model Shelf Break Local Harbor Model CROSS SECTION PLAN VIEW

Waves and Currents in the San Pedro Channel SCCOOS providing currents CDIP providing wave observations, Nowcasts and forecasts. http: //sccoos. ucsd. edu/themes/harbors

Ports of Los Angeles/Long Beach Catalina Website allows you to click on your area of interest for further details.

3 day wave forecast Capability to send automated notification when thresholds are exceeded!

7 DAY FORECAST, WWW/CDIP

PEAK WAVE PERIOD 12 -13 sec

Geo-referenced NOAA charts to Google

SAN FRANCISCO BAR BUOY Buoy-driven wave model predictions CDIP Point Reyes Buoy Long Period Swell CDIP Bar Buoy Short Period Seas NOAA 46026 Swell + Sea Prediction

Step 1. Validate Buoy-driven Regional Wave Transformation Hindcast at Bar Buoy. Red=Model Blue=Bar Buoy February 2008 HINDCAST VALIDATION

Feb 23, 2008, 9 pm. PST 3 m, 10 sec Breaking Waves on the San Francisco Bar

Feb 24, 2008, 3 p. m. PST 6 m, 14 sec Breaking Waves on the San Francisco Bar

Marine Incidents near SF Bar Incidents in the Vicinity of SF Bar

PROPOSED LOCATIONS OF WAVE BUOYS AT THE MCR

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS (BILL O’REILLLY) MCR The buoys can be used to both drive coastal wave models at the offshore and nested nearshore boundaries (hindcasts and nowcast) as well as validate basin- and regional-scale ww 3 model forecasts at these critical hi res coastal model "handoff" locations. You can use them in a more regional way. eg. to make wave predictions for Willapa Bay as well, especially if you cheat the inner shelf buoy slightly north of the Columbia River mouth.

USGS/USACE Nominal Ebb tides Max Ebb Tides

Summary 1. The MCR is a complex region. In order to obtain a good wave model/bar forecast, you need high resolution directional wave data. 2. The Inner/Outer Buoy concept has worked well.

Budget Buoy, mooring, shipping, painting $85, 000 Salary (Admin, Tech, Programmer, BOR, JOT) $10, 000 Travel (5 days SD/Portland) Sub Total Overhead TOTAL $1300 ________ $96, 300 27, 700 _________ $120, 000

What does the $120 K cover? 1. Order, shipment, paint, calibration, 2. Integration into CDIP system 3. Iridium configuration and costs, 4. Travel to Portland for installation, 5. Alert notification, 6. Data analysis, quality control, archive and dissemination 7. Bill O’Reilly – wave model collaboration Does not include 1. Vessel costs 2. Anchor chain 3. Local field team

Annual Maintenance $20, 000 -6, 600 ------$13, 400 (CDIP) Umpqua Buoy

% Deployed: Percentage of the year during which the buoy was deployed and on site. % Coverage: Percentage of the deployed period for which good spectral data were obtained. Total spectra: The number of spectra files generated for the year. Reliability Statistics 2008

SAMPLE PRODUCTS

http: //cdip. ucsd. edu

Hs(ft) Tp Dp SSt

California Swell Nowcast and Forecast Models

Gray’s Harbor Station Info Page

Min, Max, Mean

Customized Wave Model Nowcast and Forecast for the Navy

Directional Spectrum plot shows Bi-modal wave direction