Where does the wave data
come from?
One of the primary instruments CDIP uses to measure wave height, wave period, wave direction and sea surface temperature is the Datawell Directional Buoy. These instruments are approximately 3 ft round and weigh 400 lbs. They are tethered to the bottom with a mooring line and anchored with 1200 lbs of ballast chain.
Data is transmitted from an offshore buoy via a VHF antenna. The receiving station is onshore, usually mounted in a lifeguard tower or Coast Guard station. The data acquisiton platform is a Sun Ultra 5. The data from the buoy is gathered and archived on the Sun and every 30 minutes it is transferred back to a central computer at Scripps for processsing. The data, which undergoes numerous data quality control checks, is then distributed via the World Wide Web at http://cdip.ucsd.edu and sent to the National Weather Service for broadcast on their marine weather channel.
The buoy deployment barge is a modified Boston Whaler. This vessel is used for local deployment/recovery. Periodically it is necessary to dive on the buoy or mooring for general maintainence.
 A. CDIP divers |
 C. Datawell Directional Buoy |
 B. Buoy deployment barge |