A High-Resolution Future Wave Climate Projection for the Coastal Northwestern Atlantic

Abstract

 A high-resolution wave climate projection for the northwestern Atlantic Ocean has been conducted to help assess possible regional impacts due to global climate change. The spectral wave model NOAA WAVEWATCH III is utilized with three coupled (two-way) grids to resolve the northwestern Atlantic and coastal southern and eastern USA at approximately 21 km and 7 km respectively, and covers the periods 1979-2003 (historic) and 2075-2099 (future). Hourly wind field forcings are provided by a high-resolution AGCM (MRI-AGCM 3.2S; 21 km) and allow for better modeling of large storm events (important for extreme event statistics). Climatological (25-year) comparisons between future and historical periods indicate significant wave heights will decrease in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean (-5.7 %) and Gulf of Mexico (-4.7 %) but increase in the Caribbean Sea (2.4 %). Comparisons also indicate that large changes in mean wave direction will occur in the Gulf of Mexico (5.0°), with the largest occurring west of the Florida peninsula (over 15°).