Coastal Wave Model Statistics for Bass Strait and South-East Australia, 1981-2020

Bass Strait and South-East Australia's wave climate is modeled at high resolution using WAVEWATCH III over a 40-year period. The dataset, produced by the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, is validated against coastal buoys and shows a 5% increase in significant wave height and a shift in peak wave direction. Analyses reveal seasonal variations and correlations with the Southern Annular Mode.

Use Cases

• Analyzing long-term trends in significant wave height based on the reported 5% increase over 40 years
• Studying seasonal shifts in peak wave direction based on the described winter-to-summer rotation
• Investigating correlations between wave conditions and the Southern Annular Mode during autumn and winter
• Validating regional wave models using the network of coastal buoys referenced in the validation
• Assessing implications for coastal erosion and sediment transport based on the described wave characteristic changes

Strengths

• Model results are validated against a network of coastal buoys
• Covers a 40-year time period from 1981 to 2020
• Based on a high-resolution, third-generation wave model (WAVEWATCH III)

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment

Provenance

Source

Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (data_gov_au)

Collection Method

High-resolution third-generation wave model (WAVEWATCH III) based on unstructured grids

Time Range

1981 to 2020

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-09 01:29:11.396489; freshness should be verified

Geography

Bass Strait and South-East Australia