Ocean Wave Measurement Using GPS Buoys

The observation of ocean wave parameters is necessary to improve forecasts of ocean wave conditions. In this paper, we investigate the viability of using a single GPS receiver to measure ocean-surface waves, and present a method to enhance the accuracy of the estimated wave parameters. The application of high-pass filtering to GPS data in conjunction with directional wave spectral theory is a core concept in this article. Laboratory experiments were conducted to test the viability and accuracy measurements of wave parameters made by a single GPS receiver buoy. These tests identified an error of less than 1% for the rotational arm measurement (wave height) and an error of 1% in verifications of the wave direction and wave period, and showed a 0.488 s bias; this is sufficiently accurate for many specific purposes. These results are based on the best cut-off frequency value derived in this study. A moored-sea GPS buoy on the Taiwanese coast was used to estimate the GPS-derived wave parameters. Our results indicate that data from a single GPS receiver, processed with the presented method to reduce the error of the estimated parameters, can provide measurements of ocean surface wave to reasonable accuracy