Trend Detection of Wave Parameters along the Italian Seas

Tommaso Caloiero,Francesco Aristodemo

doi:10.3390/w13121634

Abstract

In this paper, trend detection of wave parameters such as significant wave height, energy period, and wave power along the Italian seas was carried out. To this purpose, wave time series in the period 1979–2018 taken from the global atmospheric reanalysis ERA-Interim by European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) were considered. Choosing a significance level equal to 90%, the use of the Mann–Kendall test allowed estimating ongoing trends on the mean values evaluated at yearly and seasonal scale. Furthermore, the assessment of the magnitude of the increase/decrease of the wave parameters was performed through the Theil–Sen estimator. The obtained results underlined that the mean values of the considered wave parameters were characterized by a high occurrence of positive trends in the different Italian seas. The findings of this study could have implications for studies of coastal flooding, shoreline variations, and port operations, and for the assessment of the performances of Wave Energy Converters.

Highlights

The Italian seas are usually characterized by a high number of offshore and coastal activities with increased exploitation of various types of marine resources (e.g., [1])
Regarding the trends of the mean wave parameters at annual scale, the results showed an overall rise of Hs, Te, and P
This was especially evident off the western area of Sardinia and in the Ionian Sea

Summary

Introduction

The Italian seas are usually characterized by a high number of offshore and coastal activities with increased exploitation of various types of marine resources (e.g., [1]). As highlighted by the fifth report of the International Panel on Climate Change [2], the Mediterranean, including all the Italian seas, represents one of the most exposed zones in the world to the impacts of global warming. Among the hazards exacerbated by climate change, wind-generated waves appear to be among the most significant. Their importance arises from different studies and applications occurring offshore such as navigation safety, ship routes, oil and gas production and transportation, respectively, derived by the use of platforms and pipelines. The potential increase/decrease of wave parameters is a key factor in the change of coastal flooding and erosion processes [4,5], and of the real performances of devices adopted to transform wave energy into electricity (e.g., [6,7])

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion