Global increase in tropical cyclone ocean surface waves

The long-term changes of ocean surface waves associated with tropical cyclones (TCs) are poorly observed and understood. Here, we present the global trend analysis of TC waves for 1979–2022 based on the ERA5 wave reanalysis. The maximum height and the area of the TC wave footprint in the six h reana...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature communications 2024-01, Vol.15 (1), p.174-174, Article 174
Main Authors: Shi, Jian, Feng, Xiangbo, Toumi, Ralf, Zhang, Chi, Hodges, Kevin I., Tao, Aifeng, Zhang, Wei, Zheng, Jinhai
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
704/106/829
704/829
Cyclones
Footprints
Humanities and Social Sciences
multidisciplinary
Ocean surface
Ocean waves
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Surface waves
Trend analysis
Tropical cyclones
Wave energy
Wave power
Waves
Wind speed
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Summary:The long-term changes of ocean surface waves associated with tropical cyclones (TCs) are poorly observed and understood. Here, we present the global trend analysis of TC waves for 1979–2022 based on the ERA5 wave reanalysis. The maximum height and the area of the TC wave footprint in the six h reanalysis have increased globally by about 3%/decade and 6%/decade, respectively. The TC wave energy transferred at the interface from the atmosphere to the ocean has increased globally by about 9%/decade, which is three times larger than that reported for all waves. The global energy changes are mostly driven by the growing area of the wave footprint. Our study shows that the TC-associated wave hazard has increased significantly and these changes are larger than those of the TC maximum wind speed. This suggests that the wave hazard should be a concern in the future. Ocean waves caused by tropical cyclones show a significant global increase of energy and area over the last 44 years, leading to critical emerging wave hazard.
ISSN:2041-1723
2041-1723
DOI:10.1038/s41467-023-43532-4