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Pacific Storm and Surf Forecast
Updated: March 29, 2010 9:18 PM
Buoys: Northern CA - Southern CA - Hawaii - Gulf of Alaska - Pacific Northwest
Buoy Forecast:
Northern CA - Southern CA - Hawaii - Gulf of Alaska - Pacific Northwest
Pacific Links:  Atmospheric Models - Buoy Data - Current Weather - Wave Models
Forecast Archives: Enter Here
A chronology of recent Mavericks Underground forecasts. Once you enter, just click on the HTML file forecast you want to review (e.g. 073199.html equals July 31, 1999). To view the maps that correspond to that forecast date, select the html file labeled 073199 maps.html
Swell Potential Rating = 4.2 - California & 3.9 - Hawaii
Using the 'Winter' Scale
(See Swell Category Table link at bottom of page)
Probability for presence of largest swells in near-shore waters of NCal, SCal or Hawaii.    
Issued for Week of Monday 3/29 thru Sun 4/4
Swell Potential Rating Categories
5 = Good probability for 3 or more days of Significant swell
4 = Good probability for 1-2 days of Significant swell
3 = Good probability for 3 or more days of Intermediate/Advanced swell
2 = Good probability for  1-2 days of
Intermediate/Advanced swell
1 = Good probability for 3 or more days of Impulse or Windswell
0 = Low probability for 1-2 days of Impulse or Windswell   

Swell #27 Pushing Towards California
Gulf Gale Pattern Setting Up - Wet Weather Ahead for CA

 

New Swell Classification Guidelines (Winter)

Significant: Winter - Swell 8 ft @ 14 secs or greater (11+ ft faces) for 8+ hours (greater than double overhead). Summer - Head high or better.
Advanced: Winter - Swell and period combination capable of generating faces 1.5 times overhead to double overhead (7-10 ft) Summer - Chest to head high.
Intermediate: Winter - Swell and period combination generating faces at head high to 1.5 times overhead (4-7 ft). Summer - Waist to chest high.
Impulse/Windswell: Winter - Swell and period combination generating faces up to head high (1-4 ft) or anything with a period less than 11 secs. Summer - up to waist high swell. Also called 'Background' swell.

PACIFIC OVERVIEW
On Saturday (3/27) North and Central California was getting head high leftover swell from the Gulf of Alaska with offshore's but still a fair amount of warble intermixed.  Southern California was getting the same leftover wrap-around Gulf swell with waves thigh to waist high up north and clean, a bit smaller down south and swamped by tide. Hawaii's North Shore was getting a new pulse of Gulf sideband swell with waves head high or so and trades pretty strong with a touch of north on it making for some texture.  The East Shore was getting east windswell at thigh high and chopped. The South Shore was getting new southern hemi background swell with waves waist high or a little more and clean.

The forecast for North and Central CA is for new swell arriving from the Gulf late Sunday under south winds then fading from 8-9 ft on Monday. Swell to take a big step upwards Tuesday from the Gulf to 15 ft or better holding Wednesday and even Thursday but trashed the whole time. Southern California is to see next to nothing Sunday then new north angled swell is expected in for Monday at chest to head high. Should high surf from the Gulf is expected in on Tuesday building late and pushing 8 ft or more Wednesday and 7 ft Thursday but with onshore winds from Monday evening onwards. The North Shore of Hawaii is to see small Gulf sideband swell at 2 ft overhead Sunday then fading from 1 ft overhead Monday. Larger Dateline swell is possible by Tuesday at 14 ft fading from 11 ft Wednesday and down to 1 ft overhead Thursday. The East Shore is to have steady waist high or so east windswell through the weekend then coming up Tuesday to the 1 ft overhead range or so, but just trade induced windswell. The South Shore is to see fading southern hemi swell Sunday at thigh high, then gone Monday with no return forecast.

Longterm the Madden Julian Oscillation (MJO) remains in the Inactive Phase supposedly reducing odds for storm formation through about the first week in April. But El Nino continues strongly influencing the North Pacific storm track with a series of weather systems on the charts. A small storm developed in the Gulf Fri/Sat (3/27) with up to 38 ft seas and pushing well into the California swell window. And a broader and solid gale is developing right behind pushing from the dateline and expected to move to the Gulf Sat-Mon (3/29) eventually pushing right into to US West Coast bringing winds and rain with sideband swell energy sliding down into Hawaii. And yet two more might develop behind dropping south from the Northeast Gulf over the later part of next week into the weekend but only good for more wind and rain, but maybe reaching the whole way to San Diego. El Nino has not given up the ghost yet, not by a long shot if you believe the models.  

 

SHORT- TERM FORECAST
Current marine weather and wave analysis.cgius forecast conditions for the next 72 hours

North Pacific

Overview
On Saturday (3/27) the North Pacific jet was looking far better than days previous with a single consolidated flow of up to 180 kt winds tracking more or less flat across the width of the ocean with a small trough on it's leading edge in the Eastern Gulf of Alaska a mere 800 nmiles away from North and Central CA and heading in that direction. Good support for gale development in that trough. Over the next 72 hrs energy levels are to build in the Western Gulf with 210 kt winds expected by Monday (2/29) over a large area feeding a broad but gentle trough there and providing good support for gale development there. This trough is to hold if not build into Wednesday AM while moving towards the North CA coast with winds up to 180 kts impacting the coast with the bottom of the trough pushing over Pt Conception late Wednesday. A weather even is expected then along with good support for gale development. Beyond 72 hours a bit of a ridge is to try and develop in the Gulf, but not really happen with 160 kts winds continuing falling south over the Sierras into Friday (4/2), then a new trough developing in the Gulf Saturday and looking to slam right into Central CA again. Back to the west the jet is to be tracking far to the north almost over Kamchatka and the Aleutians though solid with 150 kts winds in control, likely feeding the weather pattern in the east. No gale development obvious though for the dateline.

At the surface on Saturday (3/27) remnants of the First Gulf Storm were circulating 600-800 nmiles off North California and easing to the east. Still 35 kt west winds were in control generating 25 ft seas at 40N 140W likely setting up swell of 8.3 ft @ 14 secs (11 ft faces) for Sunday evening for Central CA reaching into Pt Conceptions for early Monday (3/29). A far broader gale was also circulating over the dateline bound for the US West Coast (see Second Gulf Storm below). Over the next 72 hours the Second Gulf Storm (really a gale) is to be in control of the weather picture.

 

Second Gulf Storm - # 27 Updated Mon PM (3/29)
A new storm started building well west of the dateline Friday (3/26) morning with 55 kt west winds at 46N 161E aimed 30 degrees east of the 315 degree path to Hawaii and 20 degrees south of the 306 degree path to NCal. Seas on the increase. In the evening (3/26) 50 kt west winds were modeled at 46N 172E aimed up the 303 degree path to NCal and 35 degrees east of the 320 degree path to Hawaii. 32 ft seas building at 47N 169E. Winds faded some to 45 kts Sat AM  (3/27) positioned at 45N 180W aimed up the 299 degree path to NCal and the 328 degree path to HI. 36 ft seas were modeled at 46N 176E. This system gradually sunk southeast Saturday night with a broad area of 40-45 kt west winds at 44N 170W (295 degrees NCal) and 35 ft seas were modeled at 45N 174W and then Sunday AM (3/28) with solid 45 kt west winds at 43N 160W targeting NCal exclusively up the 292 degree path. 37 ft seas were modeled holding at 44N 164W.  Winds were fading from 40-45 kts Sunday PM at 43N 150W with seas to 38 ft at 43N 153W. A gradual fade occurred Monday AM (3/29) but still 30-35 kt west fetch was blowing  at 43N 140W (295 deg NCal) with a broad area 37 ft seas at 42N 144W and pushing east while decaying.  32 ft seas are forecast Monday evening at 41N 140W and then fading from 31 ft Tuesday AM (3/30) at 40N 140W. Pretty impressive for late March. 

This system should provide a nice solid dose of sideband energy from early in its life pushing into the Hawaiian Islands with size approaching significant class, but not quite. Conversely, since most energy is aimed directly at Northern CA, significant class swell is expected there.Unfortunately, conditions to be abismal during the core of the swell arrival window with south and northwest winds cycling in close intervals as a series of front push into the coast, and piles of lesser period energy is to intermixed from the storm itself as it moves to within 800 nmiles of the coast.  

Hawaii:  Expect swell arrival starting Tuesday (3/30) at 6 AM with period 17 secs and size ramping up fast, peaking near 8 AM with pure swell 7.6-8.3 ft @ 17 secs (13-14 ft Hawaiian).  Swell period and size slowly fading through the day though frequency of sets on the increase some, with period down to 14-15 secs by 9 PM.  Swell Direction: 327-332 degrees.

North CA:  Expect swell arrival starting late afternoon Tues (3/30) with period 17 secs and size coming up pretty fast.  Swell to start peaking around 11 PM with pure swell 10.5-11.2 ft @ 17 secs (18-19 ft faces) and size holding in the 10.5-11.0 ft range at 16 secs (17-18 ft faces) through mid-Wed (3/31). Size and period starting to fade then with period still 15 secs through sunset. Swell 9 ft @ 14-15 secs (13 ft faces) to continue well into Thursday. Swell Direction: 288-294 degrees     

Southern CA:  Expect swell arrival starting Tues (3/30) at sunset with period 17 secs and size coming up steadily fast.  Swell to start peaking around noon on Wednesday (3/31) with pure swell outside the Channel Islands 10.0-10.7 ft @ 17 secs (17-18 ft faces) and inside the Channel Islands to 4.8-5.1 ft @ 17 secs (8.1-8.7 ft faces).  Size holding well past sunset to the early morning hours of Thursday (4/1). Size and period starting to fade then with swell in the 9 ft range @ 15 secs (14 ft faces) outside the Channel Islands and 4.5 ft @ 15 secs (6.8 ft faces) inside the Channel Islands through the day Thursday. Period down to 13 secs on Friday (4/2).  Swell Direction: 294-300 degrees   

 

North Pacific Animations: Jetstream - Surface Pressure/Wind - Sea Height - Surf Height

 

California Nearshore Forecast
On Saturday (3/27) a gale low was wrapping up off Oregon with a front from that gale 600 nmiles off the California coast and pushing northeast but fading, expected to fall apart Sunday. Remnants of the front are possible on Sunday down into San Francisco with light south winds (but rain staying north of Pt Reyes), while a stronger front pushes closer over outer waters, nuzzling up to the Central Coast Monday and hitting the North Coast with south winds and rain taking control down to Pt Reyes. A slight break in the winds is forecast mid-Tuesday (3/30) then a push of moisture is forecast pushing into the Central coast late Tuesday on into Wednesday and early Thursday. Northwest winds are expected at 10-15 kts coastside during this event reaching into Southern CA by Wednesday AM (rain too) and holding into early Friday (4/2). Northwest winds to continue Friday with more light rain before a new gale starts wrapping up off North CA on Saturday (4/3) generating south winds and likely more rain for the entire coast for the weekend.

 

South Pacific

Overview
A northward tracking gale developed in the far East Pacific on Thurs AM (3/25) generating 30-32 ft seas on the 120W longitude line. 34 ft seas were modeled Thursday AM (3/25) at 56S 124W moving to 53S 120W in the evening at 32 ft. This system faded out Friday AM with residual seas of 27 ft at 50S 119W. Some degree of limited very southerly angled swell could result for Southern CA down into Mexico and Central America the weekend of 4/3, but will likely be lost in larger northwest swell expected at the same time.   


South Pacific Animations: Jetstream - Surface Pressure/Wind - Sea Height - Surf Height

 

QuikCAST's

 

LONG-TERM FORECAST
Marine weather and forecast conditions 3-10 days into the future

North Pacific

Beyond 72 hrs yet another broad El Nino fueled gale is to start building off Japan on Monday (3/29) lifting northeast and not particularly well organized, reaching the Western Gulf on Wednesday with only 35 kt southwest winds, arching over broad high pressure at 1028 mbs locked just north of Hawaii. Latest data suggests it is to not organize particularly well, with it's remnants spilling southeast into the PAcific Northwest and Central CA on Friday (4/2). Remnants of this system are to reorganize in the Eastern Gulf just off Oregon on Saturday looking to build and move over CEntral CA over the weekend (Sun 4/3). Very raw local swell in CA is the best one could hope for.    

MJO/ENSO Update (reference): As of Saturday (3/27) the Madden Julian Oscillation (MJO) was fading from the Active Phase of the MJO, moving towards a neutral state. The ENSO (El Nino Southern Oscillation) daily index was at -3.83.  The 30 day average was down to -10.57 (It bottomed out for the winter on 2/16 at -24.82) with the 90 day average down to -11.92 (bottomed out at -14.2 on 3/14). El Nino maxed out on 2/15. 

Wind anomalies at the 850 mb level (approx 5000 ft up) as defined by models indicated moderate easterly anomalies from Northern Australia peaking on the dateline and then pushing into Central America, a clear signal of  the Inactive Phase. Models project the Inactive Phase to be dominant till the end of the month (3/31) drifting east into 4/5 while dissipating. A weak version of a new Active Phase is already building in the Indian Ocean expected to reach Northern Australia by 4/5, then drifting east and  reaching the dateline 4/13. Since the Inactive Phase of the MJO is dominant now, it should gently suppress storm development.  But with the effects of El Nino on the atmosphere already well entrenched, the momentum to support storm development will be slow to dissipate over the coming next 6 months.  We will continue monitoring the MJO for signs of Active Phase dominance in the critical March-May time frame to see if this Midoki El Nino can hang on for another year, or whether we fall back into a La Nina Pattern (where the Inactive Phase takes control). But latest data from the models suggest a return to neutral conditions.

Sea Surface Temp anomaly data (3/25) indicated no dramatic change from previous weeks, with warmer than normal waters consolidated on the equator more towards the dateline and less in the vicinity of the Galapagos Islands, almost gone off South America, but not quite. Erosion of warmer waters over the Galapagos continues, symptomatic of the fading of El Nino. In all this continues looking more like a Midoki El Nino than one of the classic variety.  But regardless, we are past the peak of this ENSO event.   

Below the surface on the equator a Kevin Wave attributable to the previous Active Phase of the MJO was fading. On 3/23 tongue of warmer than normal water was in.cgiace extending east from 140W into Central America averaging 3 deg C above normal with a small core at 5 C at 110W. This is expected to fuel or at least extend El Nino symptoms into summer, but is likely the last Kelvin Wave we are going to see. 

Over the entire Equatorial Pacific trades were blowing all the way to almost the Philippines, but only in the normal range. This looks like the normal Springtime transition typical for this time of the year. Previous, an area of fully blowing westerly winds extended from the far west to the dateline on 1/20 and continued through 3/15  generating the Kelvin Wave currently pushing east into Central America. We expect a normal trade pattern to take hold over the entire equatorial Pacific for the remainder of the Spring.  Previously Westerly Wind Bursts produced Kelvin Waves that resulted in the subsurface warm pool currently present in the tropical East Pacific, resulting in El Nino.  

El Nino continues affecting the global atmospheric weather pattern and is expected to continue having an impact into the Summer of 2010. This suggests that the spring storm pattern be enhanced in the North Pacific, but also the early summer storm track in the South Pacific too.  This has not been a strong El Nino, more of a solid moderate one. A respectable accumulation of warm surface water in the equatorial East Pacific and a solid pool of warm subsurface water remains in.cgiace, but seems to be eroding some suggesting El Nino has maxed out. But the atmosphere is already being strongly influenced by the warm water buildup over the past 6 months, and it will not return to a normal state for quite some time. 

Strong El Nino's bring lot's of bad weather to the US West Coast along with the benefit of increased potential for storm and swell enhancement. A moderate El Nino provides that storm and swell enhancement, but more of a gentle but steady push/momentum in-favor of storm development rather than the manic frenzy of a strong El Nino, without all the weather associated with a strong event. So in many ways a moderate El Nino is more favorable from a surf perspective. This was a moderate event.   Better yet, if it's not too strong (as this event appears to be) perhaps it will not degrade into La Nina the year after (which typically happens after stronger El Nino's), but hold in some mild El Nino-like state for several years in a row. This would be an even better outcome and something we are monitoring for.  The months of Mar-June normally are when the transition takes.cgiace.        

See more details in the new  El Nino update.

 

South Pacific

Beyond 72 hours the models suggest no swell producing fetch is to develop.   

Details to follow...

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External Reference Material: El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Madden Julian Oscillation (MJO), Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), Southern Oscillation Index (SOI), Kelvin Wave

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Local Interest

Stormsurf Hi-Res Coastal Precipitation Models Upgraded Though a bit late in the season, on 3/20 we i.cgiemented the same basic technology used in our new snow/ski models into the coastal hi-res precipitation models. So now you can not only determined whether rain is forecast for your area, but also snow. And not just light, medium or heavy snow like most sites, but the exact snowfall amount (in inches) for each 3 hr frame of the animation. Here's a sa.cgie, but now this approach is used in all our precipitation models. http://www.stormsurfing.com/cgi/display_alt.cgi?a=nwcoast_precip

Stormsurf Precip Models Upgraded! On 2/20 we upgraded some of the broader precipitation models driven by the hi-def GFS model to include snow fall. The algorithm used is similar to the recently released snow models for the Southwest US in that the areas where snow is expected are identified and the exact amount of snow forecast over a 3 hr window is e.cgiicitly color coded. For East and West Coast US interests the following links provide good exa.cgies:
West Coast: http://www.stormsurfing.com/cgi/display_alt.cgi?a=nepac_precip
East Coast: http://www.stormsurfing.com/cgi/display_alt.cgi?a=watla_precip

Stormsurf Weather Models have all been upgraded! Over the New Years break we installed all new and upgraded weather models. Also new are experimental snow models for the Southwest US. Take a look here: http://www.stormsurf.com/mdls/menu_wx.html

Read about Eric Nelson and Curt Myers, the makers of Ride-On and other Big Wave Surf Movies here: http://coastviewsmag.com/powerlines-productions-filming-the-art-of-big-wave-surfing

Ride On! Powerlines new big wave epic is now available on DVD. Get the entire big wave story of the 2008-2009 season here: http://www.mavz.com/

Click here to learn more about Casa Noble Tequila! Casa Noble Tequila If you are looking for an exquisite experience in fine tequila tasting, one we highly recommend, try Case Noble. Consistently rated the best tequila when compared to any other. Available at BevMo (in California). Read more here: http://www.casanoble.com/

Interview With Stormsurf:  The crew at SurfScience.com worked with Stormsurf on a feature about why surfers should be able to read wave charts themselves. They are firm believers that a little learning can go a long way to help your surfing.  This is a great article to help convince your friends that they can benefit from being able to read the data themsleves rather than just relying on the forecasts of others.  See the full thing here:  Create Your Own Surf Forecast with Stormsurf

North California Surf Report Works Again: After an extended downtime we finally got the North California Surf Report working again. Thanks for your patience. See it here: http://www.stormsurf.com/page2/report/ncal.html

Shark Video: Our friend Curt Myers of Powerlines productions shot this footage of 2 great whites munching on a whale carcass off Devils Slide (south of San Francisco) on Thursday. Kind of interesting to watch. Check it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8I4rZYEZMWQ (Fixed link)

Wave Model Upgrade Status Report: At this point we believe the installation of the new wave models is complete, with no problems being reported, the server stabilizing and the much requested return of the old style hemispheric Surf Height models now operational (again) and running side-by-side along the new ones. We thank you for your patience and input as we went though this process.  Your feedback helps guide our efforts and ultimately results in a better product for everyone.  Now we're off to start providing better menus to some wave model products most of you probably haven't uncovered yet (site specific graph and text forecasts), updateing the wave model FAQs and then upgrading the Weather Models.  

New Wave Model Facts: Click HERE to read more about the new wave models. Important info.

Stormsurf Wave Models Updated: On Friday (2/6) we installed the latest upgrade to our wavemodels. A year in the works, this upgrade essentially is a total re-write of every wave model product we produce. They now take advantage of the new Version 3 of the Wavewatch wavemodel. This version runs at a much higher resolution, specifically 0.0 X 0.5 degrees for the global grib with local products at 0.1667 X 0.1667 degrees, and it uses the hi-res GFS model for wind speeds. And of even more interest, the model now identifies primary swell and windwave variables. As such we now have new model images which displays this data. Also we've included out special 3D topographic land masks into all models. In all it makes for a radical step forward in wave model technology. We'll be upgrading minor components (FAQ, new menu pages etc) for a few weeks to come, but all the basics are available for your use now. Check it out here: http://www.stormsurf.com/mdls/menu_wam.html

Story About Stormsurf: The folks at SurfPulse (and specifically author Mike Wallace) have written up a really nice article about Stormsurf, complete with some good pics. Learn about how we came to be and a little of where we are going. Check it out here: http://www.surfpulse.com/2009/01/visceral-surf-forecasting-with-mark-sponsler/

Stormsurf Video: Just for fun - here's a clip about Stormsurf that ran on Bay Area TV a while back. Thought you might enjoy it: http://vimeo.com/2319455

Time Zone Converter By popular demand we've built and easy to use time convert that transposes GMT time to whatever time zone you are located. It's ion left hand column on every page on the site near the link to the swell calculator.

Need Chiropractic Help? Visit our friends at Darrow Chiropractic. Not only will Dr. Darrow fix you up, he might give you some big wave surfing tips too! See more here: http://www.darrowchiropractic.com/

Stormsurf Google Gadget - Want Stormsurf content on your Google Homepage? It's si.cgie and free. If you have Google set as your default Internet E.cgiorer Homepage, just click the link below and a buoy forecast will be added to your Google homepage. Defaults to Half Moon Bay CA. If you want to select a different location, just click on the word 'edit', and a list of alternate available locations appears. Pick the one of your choice. Content updates 4 times daily. A great way to see what waves are coming your way!
http://www.google.com/ig/add?moduleurl=http://www.stormsurf.com/gadget/stormsurf .xml

Free Stormsurf Stickers - Get your free stickers! - More details Here

Read all the latest news and happenings on our News Page here

Surf Height-Swell Height Correlation Table

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