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There are many other factors that affect the wave quality at a specific surf break, including wind conditions and tides. In general, wave quality for surfing is usually better with less wind. If there is wind, wave quality is better if the wind is blowing gently offshore (away from the coast, towards
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excellent on a low tide, but can suffer from a drastic drop in wave quality during a high tide, during which the water depth is too great, causing the wave face to break more slowly and with less power. Other surf breaks may experience the opposite effect and have better wave shape during high tide.
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towards shallower water. This is where swell period can drastically affect the conditions. The longer the period of the swell the more it tends to wrap into a spot. This means that a swell might cause waves in a spot even if it is not directed at the spot. Significant underwater irregularities, such
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These three pieces of information are the main key to forecasting the surf. If there is a swell of significant height that is headed in the direction of the break you are forecasting for, then there probably will be good surf. The swell period will tell you how much a swell will wrap into a spot and
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The only way to tell how specific conditions will affect the surf in a specific spot is to spend time observing that spot. One of the attributes of surf is that no two waves are the same, let alone two surfing spots. It requires a great deal of observation time to figure out which conditions make a
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Using swell data, which is readily available on the internet, it is possible to predict how the surf will be for a fairly large area. However, the waves can differ drastically from spot to spot and from time to time. To accurately forecast the swell conditions for a spot, it is needed to understand
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In general groundswell produces waves that are much better for surfing. Wind swell is usually smaller, and almost always choppier and harder to surf than groundswell. Although both are present at most surf spots, groundswell creates much better breaking waves and dominates the lineup. This distinct
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The shape of the ocean floor affects the break greatly. In general there are gradual sloping ocean floors which result in a slower crumpling wave (better for long boarding) and steeper sloping floors which result in a faster, hollower breaking wave (better for short boarding). There are also many
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is an important factor in surf forecasting. It is a measurement of time between successive waves in seconds. If you multiply the swell period by 1.5 you will calculate the speed in knots of the wave group for deep water. Waves travel in groups, with the individual wave traveling twice as fast the
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It is also important to notice the difference between a surf forecast and a surf report. A surf forecast is a prediction of what to expect from waves in the future. A surf report is a report of the conditions on that current day, typically given by someone who has watched the waves first-hand.
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are the most common breaks in the world. The primary characteristic of a beach break is that the waves break over a sandbar bottom. They have many random qualities in the ocean floor, that can cause the waves to be either very good or very poor, which make them extremely difficult to accurately
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levels are an extremely important factor that also impact surf conditions. Tides, which occur from varying gravitational forces between the Sun, Moon, and the Earth, are easy to predict far in advance. However, the effect of tides on wave quality differs between surf breaks. Some breaks can be
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forecast for. The quality of the waves is decided by the shapes of the sand bars at the bottom. These sandbars are always moving and adjusting due to big swells and storms, so a beachbreak will change qualities over time. There are some things that can affect the sand bars at a beachbreak:
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Smaller jetties cause sand to build up on the tip, allowing good sandbars to form. Large jetties can actually cause the waves to reflect off the jetty and wedge into the next wave making larger and better waves. The impact of jetties is especially evident at the breaks in
Newport
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http://ucelinks.cdlib.org:8888/sfx_local?sid=google&auinit=JS&aulast=Galloway&atitle=Onshore/offshore+wind+influence+on+breaking+waves:+an+empirical+study&title=Coastal+engineering&volume=13&issue=4&date=1989&spage=305&issn=0378-3839
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as underwater canyons and sea mounts, can also affect how the waves come into a surf spot. Irregularities like these may cause the surf to be much larger at one spot, while almost nonexistent at another nearby. This is the case at surf spots such as
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are breaks that have rock bottoms instead of sand bottoms. They have deeper channels next to the shallower water which gives a good form to the wave. They can often force waves to shoal quickly from deep to shallow water causing large and hollow
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group. In general waves will be referred to as either short period (15 seconds or less) or long period waves(16 or more seconds). The swell period will give you information about how the swell will affect specific breaks differently.
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Waves are created as wind blows over the ocean, transferring its energy into the water. The size of the swell is affected by three variables: the velocity of the wind, its duration, and its fetch, or distance the wind blows over.
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are breaks in which the waves bend and break around a specific point, usually resulting in consistent and good shape. Point breaks are usually formed by river mouths with loose rock bottoms.
123:(shape and size of breaking waves), but by knowing a few factors a good prediction can be made. One needs to have an understanding of how waves are formed, a basic knowledge of
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the water.) This offshore airflow helps to hold up the face of breaking waves slightly longer, allowing a surfer to have more time to maneuver on the face of the wave.
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is the direction from which the swell is coming. It is measured in degrees (as on a compass), and often referred to in general directions, such as a NNW or SW swell.
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separation occurs because groundswell originates far from the shore and has more time to separate into organized patterns, which are much easier to surf.
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In order to forecast the surf, there is important data from the swells that need to be analyzed. There are three main factors used in surf forecasting:
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data to predict onshore wave conditions. It is used by millions of people across the world, including professionals who put their
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particular spot good and which conditions do not. Only then can an accurate forecast of the surf for any conditions be made.
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One important fact about waves is that they focus more of their energy towards shallower water. Waves will always turn and
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Chamberlin, W. Sean. Exploring the World Ocean/ W. Sean
Chamberlin, Thomas D. Dickey. McGraw-Hill Companies Inc., 2008.
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refers to waves formed from local winds to the specific surf spot. A wind swell is associated with short-period swells.
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usually have deep channels directly under them which can form sandbars on the sides, making better waves at the pier.
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who work for news crews, and surfers all over the world. It is impossible to make an exact prediction of the
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refers to waves generated far off of the coast. A groundswell is associated with long-period swells.
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such as a river mouth or sewer drain can create well defined sandbars after a big outflow of water.
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Collins, Sean. Surfline’s
California Surf Guide. Surfline Wavetrak Inc., 2006
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There are two different types of swell that affect the surf conditions:
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539:"The science of surfing: A simple introduction to catching waves!"
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and tools are available to assist in formatting, such as
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Using bathymetry to predict surf for a specific break
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92:Learn how and when to remove this message
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210:how much it will grow in deep water.
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42:Please consider converting them to
520:"Wave Energy, Decay and Direction"
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107:is the process of using offshore
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46:to ensure the article remains
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415:https://www.coastalwatch.com
399:http://www.surf-forecast.com
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573:"Surf Forecast for O'ahu"
407:https://www.swellinfo.com
358:Surf Forecasting Websites
578:National Weather Service
463:surf forecasts for O'ahu
459:National Weather Service
447:https://www.spitcast.com
423:https://www.swellnet.com
391:https://www.surfnerd.com
383:https://surf-reports.com
375:http://www.surfline.com
219:Wrapping and refraction
439:https://surf-scout.com
453:Governmental agencies
431:https://deepswell.com
345:Gathering information
367:https://livesurf.ai
244:Knowing your break
140:How waves are made
396:Surf-Forecast.com
323:coastal geography
305:Weather and tides
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584:December 6,
364:LiveSurf.ai
298:Pointbreaks
263:Beachbreaks
164:Groundswell
82:August 2022
469:References
436:Surf-Scout
319:Bathymetry
181:Swell data
170:Wind swell
144:See also:
125:bathymetry
48:verifiable
428:DeepSwell
420:Swell Net
404:Swellinfo
238:Mavericks
146:Wind wave
113:forecasts
33:bare URLs
600:Category
444:Spitcast
388:Surfnerd
372:Surfline
339:dredging
327:seawalls
234:El Porto
115:online,
37:link rot
331:harbors
282:Jetties
225:refract
337:, and
285:Beach.
236:, and
155:Swells
57:reFill
335:piers
294:surf.
291:Reefs
276:Piers
129:tides
109:swell
31:uses
586:2015
457:The
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