Abstract
A 13-year-long wave hindcasting at each of the prescribed points around Japan and Korea on the Northern Pacific Ocean was conducted by using the first generation model such as a backward ray tracing model(BRTM) associated with high space resolution nesting grids under the MSM(Meso Scale Model)-based input winds condition provided by JMA(Japan Meteorological Agency). Also a wave hindcasting over the same year period on the entire region was made by use of the third generation model SWAN with medium-size space resolution grid under the same wind conditions. Comparison between hindcasts and measurements for significant wave heights and wave periods acquired at not only offshore stations around Japan and Korea but also coastal stations in the Japan Sea reveals the following findings; 1) for offshore waves and coastal waves, both models yield reasonable estimates respectively. 2) for offshore waves, error statisitcs suggest the evaluation ability of SWAN is slightly better than BRTM, but wave period statistics indicate a measure of underpredictability with SWAN. 3) for coastal waves, BRTM with high space resolution grids produces a more accurate estimate than SWAN with a medium-size space resolution grid.
