Meteorological and Climatic Data 



Meteorological and climatic data are often useful for characterizing signifi- 

 cant environmental processes and for revealing the characteristics of severe 

 storms. Significant climatic and storm events are important in analyzing and 

 interpreting the geologic and geomorphic history of coasts. Major storms or 

 long-term variations in storminess strongly affect coastal morphology. This is 

 manifested, for example, by the changes on barrier beaches associated with 

 winds, waves, and high water levels which may cause overtopping and 

 overwashing during storms. 



Meteorological and climatic data can be compiled from secondary sources 

 or through an original data collection program in the field using instruments 

 and observations. As with most of the important environmental factors, most 

 secondary information pertains to studies over historic and modern time 

 scales. Published data are plentiful and include data from many sources 

 throughout the world. The National Climatic Data Center and the National 

 Hurricane Center within NOAA are important sources of meteorological and 

 climatic data. For selected coastal sites, data collected through CERC's 

 Littoral Environmental Observation (LEO) program may also provide helpful 

 information. The titles of several important publications and addresses for 

 agencies that collect meteorological and climatic data in the United States are 

 listed in Chu, Lund, and Camfield (1987). 



Wave Data 



Wave data are required to characterize the process-response framework of 

 the coastal zone. Important wave parameters include wave height, period, 

 steepness and direction, and breaker type. Of special interest is the character 

 of waves inside the breaker zone, where it is estimated that 50 percent of 

 sediment movement takes place, mostly as bed load (Ingle 1966). Wave data 

 can be: (a) collected from secondary sources; (b) estimated in the office using 

 hindcast techniques from weather maps, shipboard observations, and littoral 

 environment observations; or (c) measured in the field using instrumented 

 wave gages. 



Wave gage data are collected by Federal and state agencies and by private 

 companies. For research projects that require wave data, analyzed wave 

 statistics may be available if instrumented buoys, offshore structures, and piers 

 are located near the study site. Published data, which are geographically 

 spotty, include statistics from wave gages, wave hindcasting, and visual obser- 

 vations from shipboard or the littoral zone. The titles of several important 

 publications and addresses for agencies that collect wave data are listed in 

 Chu, Lund, and Camfield (1987). 



Chapter 2 Secondary Sources of Coastal Information 



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