MetOcean Solutions at Australasian Coasts & Ports 2021

This week, the MetOcean Solutions team will be attending the Australasian Coasts & Ports 2021 Conference. The conference brings together engineers, planners, scientists, and researchers to discuss multi-disciplinary issues related to coasts and ports. 

On Tuesday morning, MetOcean Solutions’ oceanographer Dr Gael Arnaud will be presenting the “Assessment of future storm surge hazard in Darwin Harbour, Australia” in the section “Complex Wave & Modelling”. His research provides an insight into the influence of sea level rise (SLR) over the next 50 years on waves and surge patterns in Darwin Harbour. 

“Storm surge assessment in the context of sea level rise is a major preoccupation for coastal planners and safety authorities of coastal areas,” says Gael. “We have investigated the impact of SLR with extensive modelling of tropical cyclones, and the modelling of storm surges was performed using a coupled hydrodynamic and wave modelling system.” 

Following Gael’s presentation, MetOcean Solutions’ Senior Physical Oceanographer Simon Weppe will be presenting “Complex wave propagation patterns near shipping channels - Phase-averaged or phase-resolving wave model?”. In this paper, he explores differences between phase-resolving and phase-averaged wave modelling results for waves propagating over the Port of Townsville shipping channel. 

"Our study highlights the importance of accounting for coherent wave effects around sharp bathymetric gradients such as shipping channel,” says Simon. “Focal zones and interference patterns can significantly modulate the spatial distribution of wave energy in their lee.” 

Later in the afternoon, in the conference section “Lightning Session Talks”, Dr João Albuquerque will be presenting the “On the projected wave climate of New Zealand”. In this study, the future wave climate of New Zealand was derived from global circulation models of the fifth phase of the Climate Model Intercomparison Project for different representative concentration pathways and time-slices. 

“The database created has been made freely available,” says João. "It has excellent value for renewable energy research, risk assessment and the mitigation of future coastal hazards.” 

The Australasian Coasts and Ports 2021 conference will take place online on 11-13 April 2022 with the theme “Te oranga takutai – Adapt and Thrive”. It recognises the dynamic coastal environment that we live in and the need for coastal communities to be resilient and adaptable to thrive. 

Visit http://www.coastsandports2021.co.nz/ or contact us at enquires@metocean.co.nz for more information.