Bluegraph
SIMarineUS

Wave intelligence

The systems in the sea

A buoy's significant wave height sums everything in the sea: long groundswell from a storm a thousand miles off, a closer swell, the chop of the local wind. Each buoy's measured directional spectrum is partitioned into those systems, which are followed through time, used to place the storms the swells came from, and checked for seas that cross.

Stations analysed
162 of 164
Newest spectrum
22 min ago
Systems named
301
Swell · wind sea
199 · 102
Seas crossing
4 buoys
Storms, last month
207 placed →
Window
The last 4 days
Method
Reference

Every buoy by how orderly its largest system is: a narrow directional spread means long crests, as in groundswell; a wide one, short, confused seas.

Each petal is a system, pointing to where it comes from, north up. Its length grows with height (the ring is 13 ft); its width is the directional spread. Swell Wind sea Storm placed

StationLargest systemDirectional spread
Block Island, RI (154) 44097 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoSwell 12 s 25° moderate crests
Bethany Beach, DE 44084 · Eastern Seaboard North · 22 min agoWind sea 10 s 34° moderate crests
Virginia Beach, VA 44014 · Eastern Seaboard North · 32 min agoSwell 11 s 36° moderate crests
Virginia Beach Offshore, VA 44088 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoSwell 10 s 37° moderate crests
Thimble Shoal, VA 44087 · Eastern Seaboard North · 22 min agoWind sea 3 s 39° moderate crests
Jeffrey's Ledge, NH 44098 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoWind sea 8 s 41° short, confused crests
Cape Henry, VA 44099 · Eastern Seaboard North · 22 min agoSwell 10 s 43° short, confused crests
Buzzards Bay, MA (260) 44085 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoWind sea 7 s 46° short, confused crests
Nantucket Offshore, MA 44008 · Eastern Seaboard North · 32 min agoSwell 8 s 48° short, confused crests
Georges Bank, MA 44011 · Eastern Seaboard North · 32 min agoSwell 9 s 61° short, confused crests
Jonesport, ME 44027 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoSwell 7 s 61° short, confused crests
Barnegat, NJ (209) 44091 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoWind sea 9 s 64° short, confused crests
Boston, MA 44013 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoSwell 9 s 81° short, confused crests
Cape Cod Bay, MA (221) 44090 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoWind sea 2 s 81° short, confused crests
Long Island, NY 44025 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoSwell 13 s 81° short, confused crests
New York Harbor Entrance, NY 44065 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoGroundswell 13 s 81° short, confused crests
Portland, ME 44007 · Eastern Seaboard North · 1 h agoSwell 9 s 81° short, confused crests
Nantucket Sound, MA 44020 · Eastern Seaboard North · 32 min agoCalm: no wave system large enough to name