Wave energy flux in the Caribbean Sea: Trends and variability

Wave Energy Flux (WEF) in the Colombian Caribbean Sea is assessed using a 60 years wave reanalysis from 1958 to 2017. Significant wave height (Hs) and mean wave energy period (Tm_1,0) are validated against in situ buoy data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and from the Direcc...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inRenewable energy Vol. 181; pp. 616 - 629
Main Authors Orejarena-Rondón, Andrés F., Restrepo, Juan C., Correa-Metrio, Alex, Orfila, Alejandro
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Elsevier Ltd 01.01.2022
Subjects
Caribbean sea
ENSO
Interannual variability
Wave energy flux
Caribbean sea
ENSO
Interannual variability
Wave energy flux
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Summary:Wave Energy Flux (WEF) in the Colombian Caribbean Sea is assessed using a 60 years wave reanalysis from 1958 to 2017. Significant wave height (Hs) and mean wave energy period (Tm_1,0) are validated against in situ buoy data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and from the Dirección General Marítima in the Central Caribbean Sea and in front of the Colombian shelf. WEF is calculated at virtual buoys allocated in the central Caribbean, at the continental shelf and around insular territories revealing a long-term decrease in magnitude with an annual rate between 0.01 and 0.2% with different regional behavior. In addition, WEF variations at interannual scale are found to be associated with ENSO phases. Wave energy power decreased from 1989 to 2017 in all analyzed locations. •Wave energy flux decreased from 1958 to 2017 in the Caribbean.•Interannual variability in wave energy is linked with ENSO phases.•Long and short term WEF variability show a significant regional pattern.
ISSN:0960-1481
1879-0682
DOI:10.1016/j.renene.2021.09.081