Dunkirk Buoy
United States
Last wave reading:
Last reading
This reading is more than 3 hours old. The buoy may have stopped sending waves for now.
Significant wave height at the buoy
0.7 ft
0.2 m
- Dominant period
- —
- Direction
- from NNW 344°
This reading came without the swell and wind-wave split, so the numbers are for the whole sea.
Close to flat at the buoy: 0.7 ft of total wave height.
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)
Period
- Dominant 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
| Day | Height | Peak period | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Nov 13 | 3.9 ft | 4.8 s | NNE |
| Sat, Nov 14 | 4.7 ft | 4.9 s | NW |
| Sun, Nov 15 | 4.5 ft | 4.9 s | NW |
| Mon, Nov 16 | 2.3 ft | 3.9 s | W |
| Tue, Nov 17 | 2.9 ft | 4.2 s | WSW |
| Wed, Nov 18 | 2.4 ft | 4.2 s | WSW |
| Thu, Nov 19 | 1.3 ft | 3.4 s | WSW |
ECMWF WAM wave model via Open-Meteo, nearest model cell (42.500°N, 79.500°W). Both lines are significant wave height at sea, the same measure the buoy reports. Model output, not a Quiver beach forecast.
Nearby buoys
- Port Colborne2.6 ft · 3 sStale · 23 km
- Erie Nearshore Buoy, Erie, PAOffline · 71 km
- West Lake Ontario - Grimsby3.3 ft · 5 sStale · 77 km
- Ashtabula BuoyOffline · 134 km
- NW Lake Ontario Ajax0.3 ft · 5 sStale · 139 km
- Port Stanley3.3 ft · 4 sStale · 147 km
Other readings
- Wind
- 4 kt from the SE
- Air temperature
- 55°F (12.8°C)
- Pressure
- 1027.7 hPa
Reported Oct 21, 1:00 PM EDT.
How to read this buoy
Dunkirk Buoy is a fixed station on a pier, platform or shore, not a floating buoy. Its waves are shaped by the nearby coast and seabed.
Over the readings shown here, most wave energy reached this buoy from the NW.
Biggest hourly reading in that record: 6.5 ft at 6.3 s on Oct 16.
- Station id
- 45220
- Operator
- SUNY Buffalo State University
- Program
- IOOS Partners
- Position
- 42.561°N, 79.432°W
- Type
- Fixed station
- Local time zone
- America/New_York
- Swell split
- Yes, swell and wind waves reported
Source: NOAA National Data Buoy Center (NDBC); station operated by SUNY Buffalo State University. 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.
