Reported Nov 13, 3:26 AM GMT-5Buoy 44099

Cape Henry, VA

Name: Cape Henry, VA buoy 44099 wave observations
Creator: NOAA National Data Buoy Center (NDBC); station operated by SCRIPPS
License: https://www.usa.gov/government-works

Virginia, United States

Last wave reading: Nov 13, 2:56 AM GMT-5

Now at the buoy

Significant wave height at the buoy

3.6 ft

1.1 m

Dominant period: 4 s
Direction: from WNW 301°

Swell

0.3 ft0.1 m

11 sfrom ESE 113°

Wind waves

3.6 ft1.1 m

3.9 sfrom WNW 293°

Wind waves lead: 3.6 ft at 3.9 s from the WNW, over 0.3 ft of mid-period swell at 11 s from the ESE. 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	4.4 ft	4.5 s	NW
Sat, Nov 14	5.3 ft	4.8 s	N
Sun, Nov 15	4.5 ft	4.6 s	NNW
Mon, Nov 16	3.9 ft	4.7 s	NNE
Tue, Nov 17	2.2 ft	3.9 s	NE
Wed, Nov 18	1.4 ft	5.8 s	ENE
Thu, Nov 19	0.9 ft	6.8 s	E

ECMWF WAM wave model via Open-Meteo, nearest model cell (37.000°N, 75.750°W). Both lines are significant wave height at sea, the same measure the buoy reports. Model output, not a Quiver beach forecast.

Beaches whose Quiver forecast uses this buoy

42nd–46th Street North End23 km
Quiver forecast now: 0-1ft
Virginia Beach Pier24 km
Quiver forecast now: 0-1ft
1st Street Jetty (Virginia Beach)24 km
Quiver forecast now: 0-1ft
Croatan Jetty24 km
Quiver forecast now: 0-1ft
Camp Pendleton24 km
Quiver forecast now: 0-1ft
Croatan Beach24 km
Quiver forecast now: 0-1ft

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

Nearby buoys

Thimble Shoal, VA2.3 ft · 3 sLive · 39 km
York Spit, VA2.0 ft · 17 sLive · 58 km
Duck FRF 26m, NC3.6 ft · 4 sLive · 74 km
Duck FRF, NC2.0 ft · 3 sLive · 80 km
Virginia Beach Offshore, VA5.9 ft · 5 sLive · 86 km
Virginia Beach 64 NM East of Virginia Beach, VA6.2 ft · 6 sLive · 86 km

Nearest tide station: Virginia Beach 24 km for today’s highs and lows.

How to read this buoy

Cape Henry, VA sits 23 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 E.

Biggest hourly reading in that record: 9.8 ft at 8 s on Oct 17.

Station id: 44099
CDIP id: 147
Operator: SCRIPPS
Program: IOOS Partners
Position: 36.915°N, 75.722°W
Type: Moored buoy
Local time zone: GMT-5 (open ocean)
Swell split: Yes, swell and wind waves reported

Source: NOAA National Data Buoy Center (NDBC); station operated by SCRIPPS. 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.