Interannual variability and future projection of summertime ocean wave heights in the western North Pacific

International audienceA 70-yr (from 1985?1995 to 2055?2065) change of decadal mean summertime extreme significant wave heights (SWH) in the western North Pacific under CO2-induced global warming condition is projected. For this purpose, possible atmospheric fields under future global warming are derived from 10-yr time-slice experiments using a T106 AGCM. The future changes of SWH are assessed by an empirical approach, where possible changes of SWH are estimated using a linear regression model which shows an empirical relationship between SWH anomalies and an eastward shift of the monsoon trough. It is projected that SWH increases by up to ~0.4 m over a wide area of the western North Pacific

A framework for the probabilistic analysis of meteotsunamis

This paper is not subject to U.S. copyright. The definitive version was published in Natural Hazards 74 (2014): 123-142, doi:10.1007/s11069-014-1294-1.A probabilistic technique is developed to assess the hazard from meteotsunamis. Meteotsunamis are unusual sea-level events, generated when the speed of an atmospheric pressure or wind disturbance is comparable to the phase speed of long waves in the ocean. A general aggregation equation is proposed for the probabilistic analysis, based on previous frameworks established for both tsunamis and storm surges, incorporating different sources and source parameters of meteotsunamis. Parameterization of atmospheric disturbances and numerical modeling is performed for the computation of maximum meteotsunami wave amplitudes near the coast. A historical record of pressure disturbances is used to establish a continuous analytic distribution of each parameter as well as the overall Poisson rate of occurrence. A demonstration study is presented for the northeast U.S. in which only isolated atmospheric pressure disturbances from squall lines and derechos are considered. For this study, Automated Surface Observing System stations are used to determine the historical parameters of squall lines from 2000 to 2013. The probabilistic equations are implemented using a Monte Carlo scheme, where a synthetic catalog of squall lines is compiled by sampling the parameter distributions. For each entry in the catalog, ocean wave amplitudes are computed using a numerical hydrodynamic model. Aggregation of the results from the Monte Carlo scheme results in a meteotsunami hazard curve that plots the annualized rate of exceedance with respect to maximum event amplitude for a particular location along the coast. Results from using multiple synthetic catalogs, resampled from the parent parameter distributions, yield mean and quantile hazard curves. Further refinements and improvements for probabilistic analysis of meteotsunamis are discussed