The Global Forecast System (GFS) is a global numerical weather prediction system containing a global computer model and variational analysis run by the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS).
The model is run four times a day: 00Z, 06Z, 12Z, and 18Z. Each run produces forecasts of every hour from the initial time out to 120 hours, and then forecasts at 3-hour intervals out to 384 hours (the animated image viewer only shows data out to 240 hours).
The coupled wave model consists of global and regional nested grids. As background information, a list of selected references and a chronological list of model changes are available. Finally, GFS-Wave buoy validation is available.
Links to Model Data
(FTP)
(https)
(OpenDAP)
(Grib Filter)
* GFS-Wave data is located in gfs.YYYYMMDD/CC/wave (YYYY=year, MM=month, DD=day, CC=cycle (00,06,12,18 Z)
The Global Ensemble Forecast System - Wave (GEFS-Wave) is a one-way coupling of the GEFS atmospheric model with the WAVEWATCH III wave model. This allows for an increase in frequency of the wind forcing from 3 hours to 1 hour. This unified system has 30 members and the wave model is initialized with the previous member's 6 hour forecast. The wave model has a spatial resolution of 0.25 x 0.25 degrees. The system runs four cycles per day (00, 06, 12 and 18Z). The wave forecast has been extended from 10 to 16 days.
More information on the GEFS system is available here.
Links to Model Data
(FTP)
(https)
(Grib Filter)
* GEFS-Wave data is located in gefs.YYYYMMDD/CC/wave (YYYY=year, MM=month, DD=day, CC=cycle (00,06,12,18 Z)
The Great Lakes wave model consists of a single unstructured grid. As background information, a list of selected references and a chronological list of model changes are available.
The model is run four times a day: 00Z, 06Z, 12Z, and 18Z. Each run starts with 9-, 6- and 3-hour hindcasts and produces forecasts of every 3 hours from the initial time out to 84 hours.
Links to images
(Animated Image Viewer)
(Product Table)
Links to Model Data
(FTP)
(https)
(OpenDAP)
(Grib Filter)
* Great Lakes Wave data is located in glwu.YYYYMMDD/CC/wave (YYYY=year, MM=month, DD=day, CC=cycle (00,06,12,18 Z)
The NCEP/FNMOC Combined Wave Ensembles (NFCENS) product consists of a combination of wave ensemble outputs from the GEFS-Wave ensemble system, and from the wave ensembles run by the US Navy Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Ocenographic Center (FNMOC). The product combines outputs from a total of 51 wave ensemble members: one control run and 30 members from the GEFS-Wave system, and 20 additional members from FNMOC.
The Nearshore Wave Prediction System (NWPS) provides on-demand, high-resolution nearshore wave model guidance to U.S. coastal WFOs, triggered in real time by forecast wind grids prepared and submitted by the individual offices. NWPS is maintained and developed by NCEP's Environmental Modeling Center (EMC) in collaboration with a number of Weather Forecast Offices (WFOs), as well as partners at NOAA/NOS, USGS and USACE.
There are two classes of WAVEWATCH III® hindcasts.
Detailed descriptions of the hindcasts and reanalyses, with links to the datasets, validation statistics from buoy match-ups, and visualizations of the model data fields, can be found in the archive.
We have moved to an open development paradigm using GitHub, which means users and developers are no longer required to submit requests for usernames and passwords to access our software package.
The WAVEWATCH III® project page is here.
The latest release is available as a compressed tarball or zipfile from the project page.
To help users and developers navigate the new repositories, we have created two sets of guidelines in GitHub to help you navigate our community modeling framework, one for users and the other for developers:
The WW3 GitHub wiki hosts a description of the model, its main features, output options, user and developer guides, technical documentation and latest news.
Two COMET modules are available regarding WAVEWATCH III® and analysis of ocean swell:
Registration is required, but there is no cost for the courses.
