Shelikof Strait, AK
Alaska, United States
Last wave reading:
Now at the buoy
Significant wave height at the buoy
2.3 ft
0.7 m
- Dominant period
- —
- Direction
- from NNE 27°
Swell
0.7 ft0.2 m
12 sfrom SE 135°
Wind waves
2.0 ft0.6 m
3.4 sfrom NNE 23°
Wind waves lead: 2.0 ft at 3.4 s from the NNE, over 0.7 ft of mid-period swell at 12 s from the SE. Building over the last 6 hours, up 0.5 ft.
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%.
| Day | Height | Peak period | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Nov 13 | 3.7 ft | 6.4 s | W |
| Sat, Nov 14 | 4.5 ft | 6.9 s | W |
| Sun, Nov 15 | 3.4 ft | 5.1 s | WSW |
| Mon, Nov 16 | 5.3 ft | 6 s | W |
| Tue, Nov 17 | 4.7 ft | 6.4 s | W |
| Wed, Nov 18 | 4.4 ft | 4.8 s | ENE |
| Thu, Nov 19 | 4.3 ft | 13 s | WNW |
ECMWF WAM wave model via Open-Meteo, nearest model cell (57.750°N, 154.250°W). Both lines are significant wave height at sea, the same measure the buoy reports. Model output, not a Quiver beach forecast.
Nearby buoys
- Lower Cook Inlet1.0 ft · 4 sLive · 236 km
- Portlock Bank - 76 NM ENE of Kodiak, AK5.2 ftLive · 241 km
- Albatross Bank - 104NM South of Kodiak Is., AK9.2 ftLive · 275 km
Nearest tide station: Takli Island, Shelikof Strait 27 km for today’s highs and lows.
Other readings
- Water temperature
- 44°F (6.9°C)
- Wind
- 12 kt from the NNE, gusts 16 kt
- Air temperature
- 35°F (1.8°C)
- Pressure
- 997.3 hPa
Reported Nov 13, 12:50 AM AKST.
How to read this buoy
Over the readings shown here, most wave energy reached this buoy from the SW and S.
Biggest hourly reading in that record: 14.9 ft at 7.5 s on Nov 3.
- Station id
- 46077
- Operator
- NDBC
- Program
- NDBC Meteorological/Ocean
- Position
- 57.869°N, 154.211°W
- Type
- Moored buoy
- Local time zone
- America/Anchorage
- 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.
