Reported Nov 13, 12:50 AM GMT-8Buoy 46013

Bodega Bay - 48NM NW of San Francisco, CA

Name: Bodega Bay - 48NM NW of San Francisco, CA buoy 46013 wave observations
Creator: NOAA National Data Buoy Center (NDBC)
License: https://www.usa.gov/government-works

California, United States

Last wave reading: Nov 13, 12:10 AM GMT-8

Now at the buoy

Significant wave height at the buoy

10.5 ft

3.2 m

Dominant period: —
Direction: from WNW 302°

Swell

7.9 ft2.4 m

14 sfrom WNW 293°

Wind waves

6.9 ft2.1 m

6.7 sfrom S 180°

Long-period groundswell leads: 7.9 ft at 14 s from the WNW, with 6.9 ft of wind waves at 6.7 s from the S on top. Holding steady over the last 6 hours.

Significant wave height is the average of the biggest third of waves at the buoy. It is not surf height at a beach.

Trend at the buoy

Height at the buoy

Total (significant height)
Swell
Wind waves

Period

Swell period
Wind-wave period

Hourly means of the buoy's readings. Arrows point the way the waves travel.

Model vs the buoy

Buoy, hourly
Model, past days
Model forecast

Over the last 5 days, the model tracked the buoy within 10%.

Model peak each day at the buoy
Day	Height	Peak period	From
Fri, Nov 13	20.3 ft	18 s	WNW
Sat, Nov 14	23.6 ft	18 s	WNW
Sun, Nov 15	17.2 ft	15 s	WNW
Mon, Nov 16	17.1 ft	16 s	WNW
Tue, Nov 17	12.8 ft	15 s	WNW
Wed, Nov 18	9.4 ft	12 s	WNW
Thu, Nov 19	10.0 ft	11 s	WNW

ECMWF WAM wave model via Open-Meteo, nearest model cell (38.250°N, 123.250°W). Both lines are significant wave height at sea, the same measure the buoy reports. Model output, not a Quiver beach forecast.

Nearby beaches

Listed by distance only. Their Quiver forecasts are not linked to this buoy.

Bodega Bay / Doran Beach25 km
Quiver forecast now: 6-7ft
North Salmon Creek Beach26 km
Quiver forecast now: 13-14ft
Dillon Beach30 km
Quiver forecast now: 8-9ft

Beach numbers are each beach's own Quiver forecast, not a conversion of this buoy reading.

Nearby buoys

Point Reyes, CA12.5 ft · 13 sLive · 35 km
San Francisco - 18NM West of San Francisco, CA12.5 ftLive · 68 km
San Francisco Bar, CA9.5 ft · 15 sLive · 78 km
Half Moon Bay - 24NM SSW of San Francisco, CA8.9 ft · 14 sLive · 105 km
Pt Arena - 19NM North of Point Arena, CA13.8 ftLive · 124 km
Monterey - 27NM WNW of Monterey, CA10.5 ft · 15 sLive · 180 km

Nearest tide station: Bodega Harbor entrance 24 km for today’s highs and lows.

How to read this buoy

Bodega Bay - 48NM NW of San Francisco, CA sits 25 km from the closest beach listed here: near enough to show what is arriving, far enough that islands, points and the seabed still change it before it breaks.

Over the readings shown here, most wave energy reached this buoy from the NW and W.

Biggest hourly reading in that record: 17.1 ft at 15 s on Nov 8.

Station id: 46013
Operator: NDBC
Program: NDBC Meteorological/Ocean
Position: 38.235°N, 123.317°W
Type: Moored buoy
Local time zone: GMT-8 (open ocean)
Swell split: Yes, swell and wind waves reported

Source: NOAA National Data Buoy Center (NDBC). Licence: Public domain (US government work). Station page at the source.

Not for navigation. Readings can be late, missing or wrong; check official marine forecasts before going to sea.

Buoy terms

Significant height: The average of the biggest third of waves the buoy measured. Sets in the surf zone can be bigger or smaller.
Dominant period: Seconds between the waves carrying the most energy. Longer period means more power and more bend around points.
Swell vs wind waves: Swell was made by distant wind; wind waves were made nearby. The buoy splits its spectrum at a cutoff period to report each.
Direction: Where waves come from, in degrees true. 270° is from the west.