Wind Wave Modeling in the Laptev, East Siberian, and Chukchi Seas

The article analyzes wind wave parameters in the Laptev, East Siberian, and Chukchi seas based on the results of numerical calculations with the WAVEWATCH III wave model and NCEP/CFSR/CFSv2 reanalysis as wind forcing for a period from 1979 to 2021. Wave modeling was done on an unstructured computational grid with a high resolution (up to 800 m) in the coastal zone. Maps of the long-term mean values of the wave height, length, and period were obtained. For several points in the central part of each sea, the mean annual values of wave heights are calculated and the interannual variability are analyzed. The maximum significant wave height was 5–6 m in the Laptev Sea, 6–7 m in the East Siberian Sea, and 7–7.5 m in the Chukchi Sea. The interannual variability analysis showed that there is a positive wave height trend for all three seas. The largest increase in annual mean wave height is observed in the East Siberian Sea (from 0.4 to 1.4 m in the ice-free period).