Abstract

Ports are vital links in the chain of maritime transportations and have a decisive
impact on their quality. Recent reports of marine accidents show that up to 60% of
them are due to the human factor. The majority of accidents could be avoided if
appropriate means of support for navigation existed. Consequently, the need for near
real time forecast of the sea state, especially in approach channels and inside the
harbour, is increasing rapidly.

The aim of the present study is to develop an integrated numerical model that will be
capable of using satellite forecasts of the sea state from open source databases as input
and handle the wave propagation in a larger coastal scale focused in the harbour area.
The wave propagation will be divided in two scales, a larger scale of almost 20 km 2
the simulation of which will be carried out by a spectral wave model (Model A) and a
much smaller scale of about 5 km2, which will be carried out by a phase resolving
mild slope model (Model B).

In order to determine the capabilities of the aforementioned models to accurately

predict the sea conditions, two alternative numerical models will be used as Model A
and two as Model B. Regarding Model A, the third generation spectral wave model
TOMAWAC developed at LNHE and the third generation spectral wave model
MIKE21 SW, developed by DHI, will be used. As far as Model B is concerned, the
elliptic mild slope wave agitation model ARTEMIS developed at LNHE, and the
hyperbolic mild slope wave model WAVE – L developed at AUTH university, will be
used.

In the present study, a 3 hour simulation was carried out for the Port of Patras using
oceanographic variables concerning wave height characteristics provided by the
Copernicus Marine Environmental Monitoring Service (CMEMS). The resulting
spatial wave height distributions which stem from the simulations of the alternative
models were compared for the Port of Patras, in order to determine the capabilities of
the aforementioned models to accurately describe the physical processes related to the
wave propagation in coastal areas. Special attention was given in the wave conditions
in the approach channel and inside the harbour area, in order to finally decide whether
the conditions required for harbour tranquility are satisfied.

The alternative spectral wave models’ results about the spatial distribution of the
wave height seem to be in relative agreement, however the convergence of the
algorithm is much faster in TOMAWAC resulting in over ten times lower
computational time in relevance to MIKE21 SW. Concerning the alternative mild
slope models (Model B) they are largely capable to capture the mechanisms of wave
reflection and diffraction, however large reflected heights were observed in the
computational domain which can be attributed to the linear nature of the models.

The integrated model presented in this study, along with the various models that were
examined can provide forecasts of the sea state at 3 hour intervals with a minimal
computational effort. With small improvements, mainly in model B (e.g.
improvement of the results regarding reflected wave trains), this integrated model can
be a valuable asset to a wide variety of users and be utilized to improve maritime
safety and management of the harbour activities.