Real-Time Wave Data from Hurricane Earl

NortekUSA visited with engineers at the US Army Corps of Engineers Field Research Facility in Duck, NC late this past July, as engineers were busy preparing the Aquadopp Profilers shown here for nearshore deployment.  These two instruments were to become the latest addition to the Duck cross-shore array, which already included four Nortek Acoustic Waves and Currents (AWAC) sensors and two Waverider buoys.  The Aquadopps were deployed at depths of 2m and 3m. 

Today and tomorrow, as we approach the peak of hurricane season and Hurricane Earl barrels past the Outer Banks, those of us who are not busy packing up cars and heading down evacuation routes, can jump online and take a look at the real action.  Sensors are cabled to the shore and hourly data are available on the Field Research Facility website.  Simply clicking on any of the stations will instantly produce an array of data products, including wave heights, current profiles, and energy spectrographs.  Most of the plots are created using the Wavector Software product.

This amazing data set is used in the development of the very latest generation cross-shore wave models and we invite you to take a look at the capabilities offered by our friends in Duck!     We hope that Hurricane Earl brings nice wind and waves for observations, but not enough for any damage.  Be safe.