An Operational Wave System within the Monitoring Program of a Mediterranean Beach

Abstract

This work assesses the performance of an operational wave system in the Mediterranean Sea by comparing computed data with measurements collected at different water depths. Nearshore data measurements were collected through a field experiment carried out at Poetto beach (Southern Sardinia, Italy) during spring 2017. In addition to coastal observations, we use intermediate and deep water wave data measured by two buoys: one situated North-West of Corsica and the other in the Gulf of Lion. The operational wave system runs once a day to predict the wave evolution up to five days in advance. We use a multi-grid approach in which a large grid extends over the entire Mediterranean basin and a fine grid covers the coastal seas surrounding the islands of Sardinia and Corsica. The comparison with measurements shows that the operational wave system is able to satisfactorily reproduce the wave evolution in deep and intermediate waters where the relative error of the significant wave height is 17%. The error exceeding 25% in coastal waters suggests that the use of a finer grid and the coupling with an atmospheric model able to catch local effects is advisable to accurately address nearshore wave processes driven by coastal wind forcing.

Natural vs. Anthropic Influence on the Multidecadal Shoreline Changes of Mediterranean Urban Beaches: Lessons from the Gulf of Cagliari (Sardinia)

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An integrated sea-land approach for analyzing forms, processes, deposits and the evolution of the urban coastal belt of Cagliari

“…Residential developments, in addition to industrial activities, have placed significant human pressure on the two beach systems of Giorgino and Poetto, which are, respectively, located to the west and east of the metropolitan area of Cagliari. In particular, recent economic development (with the coexistence of industry and fishing, touristic and recreational activities) has almost completely reshaped the original coastal morphology and modified the fluvial and lagoonal systems, increasing the vulnerability to coastal risks, especially flooding and erosion (Brambilla, van Rooijen, Simeone, Ibba, & De Muro, 2016;De Muro, Ibba, Simeone, Buosi, & Brambilla, 2017;Ruju et al, 2019).…”

Spectral wave modelling of the extreme 2013/2014 winter storms in the North-East Atlantic

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