Trend analysis of wave storminess: wave direction and its impact on harbour agitation

In the context of wave climate variability, longterm alterations in the wave storminess pattern of the Catalan coast (northwestern Mediterranean Sea) are analysed in terms of wave energy content and wave direction, on the basis of wave hindcast data (from 44-year time series). In general, no signifi...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Casas Prat, Mercè, Sierra Pedrico, Juan Pablo|||0000-0003-0814-1134
Format: article
Publication Date:2010
Country:España
Institution:Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)
Repository:UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:upcommons.upc.edu:2117/10461
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/2117/10461
https://dx.doi.org/10.5194/nhess-10-2327-2010
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Harbors -- Spain -- Tarragona
Harbors -- Hydrodynamics
Wave strominess
Ports -- Hidrodinàmica
Ports -- Catalunya -- Tarragona
Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Enginyeria civil::Enginyeria hidràulica, marítima i sanitària::Ports i costes
Description
Summary:In the context of wave climate variability, longterm alterations in the wave storminess pattern of the Catalan coast (northwestern Mediterranean Sea) are analysed in terms of wave energy content and wave direction, on the basis of wave hindcast data (from 44-year time series). In general, no significant temporal trends are found for annual mean and maximum energy. However, the same analysis carried out separately for different wave directions reveals a remarkable increase in the storm energy of events from the south, which is partly due to a rise in the annual percentage of such storms. A case study of Tarragona Port (on the southern Catalan coast) highlights the importance of including changes in wave direction in the study of potential impacts of climate change. In particular, an increase in the frequency of storms from the south leads to greater agitation inside the Port.