West Washington - 300NM West of Aberdeen, WA
Washington, United States
Last wave reading:
Now at the buoy
Significant wave height at the buoy
15.4 ft
4.7 m
- Dominant period
- —
- Direction
- from SSW 203°
Swell
12.8 ft3.9 m
10 sfrom SSW 203°
Wind waves
8.9 ft2.7 m
6.2 sfrom S 180°
Mid-period swell leads: 12.8 ft at 10 s from the SSW, with 8.9 ft of wind waves at 6.2 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%.
| Day | Height | Peak period | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Nov 13 | 28.4 ft | 18 s | WSW |
| Sat, Nov 14 | 24.1 ft | 16 s | W |
| Sun, Nov 15 | 27.2 ft | 16 s | WSW |
| Mon, Nov 16 | 21.5 ft | 15 s | W |
| Tue, Nov 17 | 16.1 ft | 12 s | WNW |
| Wed, Nov 18 | 16.5 ft | 12 s | WNW |
| Thu, Nov 19 | 10.3 ft | 12 s | WNW |
ECMWF WAM wave model via Open-Meteo, nearest model cell (46.250°N, 131.000°W). Both lines are significant wave height at sea, the same measure the buoy reports. Model output, not a Quiver beach forecast.
Nearby buoys
- South Nomad18.7 ft · 11 sStale · 327 km
- West Oregon - 275NM West of Coos Bay, OR21.0 ftLive · 401 km
- Tillamook, OR - 85 NM WNW of Tillamook, OR17.1 ftLive · 407 km
- South Brooks13.8 ft · 8 sStale · 468 km
- La Perouse Bank10.5 ft · 9 sStale · 485 km
- Astoria Canyon, OR17.1 ft · 12 sLive · 496 km
Other readings
- Water temperature
- 56°F (13.1°C)
- Wind
- 21 kt from the S, gusts 25 kt
- Air temperature
- 55°F (12.8°C)
- Pressure
- 973.3 hPa
Reported Nov 12, 11:50 PM GMT-9.
How to read this buoy
Over the readings shown here, most wave energy reached this buoy from the W and NW.
Biggest hourly reading in that record: 31.2 ft at 16 s on Nov 8.
- Station id
- 46005
- Operator
- NDBC
- Program
- NDBC Meteorological/Ocean
- Position
- 46.147°N, 131.077°W
- Type
- Moored buoy
- Local time zone
- GMT-9 (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.
