Shoaling Waves Experiment (SHOWEX) - 1999

SHOWEX was the first comprehensive ocean waves experiment that made direct measurements of the various terms in the wave action balance equation, which is the underlying principle of all wave prediction models.

The project was a collaboration between 14 institutions and marine laboratories with the goal to improve the scientific understanding of the properties and evolution of surface gravity waves in intermediate and shallow water depths.

The project mainly consisted of field experiment with three intensive observation periods focused on either measuring directly and/or by numerical methods the terms in the wave action equation.

The project’s information came from its utilization of innovation and diverse instrumentation including: ocean vessels, ASIS buoy, HF radar, aircraft and satellite observations. Consistent with previous findings, the results support an extended understanding of the physics of ocean wave growth and dissipation. This data will provide new formulations of source terms to improve predictions of waves in shoaling water depths.

SHOWEX also provided new methodologies and approaches to measuring ocean wave properties and atmospheric fluxes over the continental shelf.

View SHOWEX PDF presentation.


Wind speed and direction inter-comparisons among the different measuring instrumentations from airborne, satellite, and buoy observations