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Brittany wave buoy daily means for Dec 2017

Daily means from the Brittany wave buoy for Dec 2017, including available wave height, period, direction, wind and sea temperature data.

Last observation shown

Data available:  to 

Monthly means for

Latest

Period Summary

Programmatically generated summary. Hog Says

720 wave-buoy observations covered all 31 days. Typical wave height was 9.8 ft (10th–90th percentile 3.9–21.7 ft), while mean reported wave period; measurement type unavailable was 7.5 seconds (10th–90th percentile 5–10 seconds). Typical wind was 18.3 mph (10th–90th percentile 5.8–32.2 mph) and mean water temperature was 15.1°C (10th–90th percentile 13.3–20°C). 5 of 3,542 checked values (0.1%) were excluded by quality control. Across 7 comparable years, mean wave height was below the same-month mean of 14.2 ft and mean wave period was below the same-month mean of 8.4 seconds.

Generated only from the observations and comparisons shown on this page.

Typical Wave Height

9.8ft
Mean: 11.3 ft
P10–P90: 3.9 — 21.7 ft
Recorded extremes

2 — 29.5 ft

Available for 718 of 720 hourly samples

Mean Wave Period

7.5secs
P10–P90: 5 — 10secs
Recorded extremes

4 — 11secs

Available for 718 of 720 hourly samples

Mean Water Temperature

15.1°C
P10–P90: 13.3 — 20°C
Recorded extremes

10.3 — 27.2°C

Available for 661 of 720 hourly samples

Typical Wind

WNW, 18.3mph
Mean: 19 mph
P10–P90: 5.8 — 32.2 mph
Recorded extremes

1.1 — 43.8 mph

Circular concentration: 44%

Compared With Previous Decembers

Historical baseline from 5,036 observations across 7 years.

Wave Height
11.3ft
2.9ft below mean
Historical mean 14.2ft
Wave Period
7.5s
0.9s below mean
Historical mean 8.4s
Water Temperature
15.1°C
2°C above mean
Historical mean 13.1°C

Chart showing grouped wave observations for Brittany. Use the table on this page for a text version of the same measurements. To open hourly observations, use a linked day name in the table.

About Brittany wave buoy

Brittany buoy (WMO 62163) is maintained jointly by the UK Met Office and Météo-France in the Bay of Biscay. Its exposed position west of Brittany monitors Atlantic conditions approaching western France and the western entrance to the English Channel. The international feed can include wind, pressure, temperature and wave observations when available.

Metrics are rows; days run left to right.
Brittany wave buoy daily means Dec 2017Last observation shown
Metric
Mean wave height (ft)9533471112814191413252010676QC rejected775611162112142124
Mean observed period(s)6Reported5Reported4Reported6Reported6Reported5Reported7Reported8Reported7Reported7Reported9Reported8Reported7Reported10Reported9Reported8Reported6Reported7Reported9Reported10Reported9Reported7Reported7Reported7Reported7Reported8Reported9Reported8Reported8Reported9Reported9Reported
Mean wave power(kW/m)-------------------------------
Mean wind directionNconcentration 97%Nconcentration 97%Nconcentration 87%ENEconcentration 67%SSEconcentration 96%SSWconcentration 98%WNWconcentration 67%Nconcentration 99%SWconcentration 71%WNWconcentration 66%Nconcentration 98%WNWconcentration 65%WNWconcentration 91%WNWconcentration 97%NNWconcentration 95%NNWconcentration 91%WSWconcentration 98%WNWconcentration 84%Sconcentration 72%SSWconcentration 94%SWconcentration 92%NWconcentration 79%Variableconcentration 14%SWconcentration 96%WSWconcentration 60%Wconcentration 84%NNWconcentration 98%WSWconcentration 48%WSWconcentration 94%WSWconcentration 98%WSWconcentration 94%
Mean wind speed (mph)221412711242313172731192731261319106771461526302417273232
Mean water temperature(°C)13.913.813.613.913.813.813.913.813.813.813.713.613.613.513.413.313.313.313.313.213.213.315.519.219.618.620.524.424.9--

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Wave metric colour key

Colours move through the scale as each number increases. They do not by themselves mean that conditions are good, safe or suitable for you.

Wave & swell height0–40+ ft
Wave & swell period0–22+ s
Wind speed0–75 mph

The displayed numbers remain the source of truth; colour is an additional visual cue.

Which wave period is shown?

The table shows the best period measurement supplied for each observation. It is not necessarily the energy period used to calculate wave power.

Tp
Peak period: the period at the strongest spectral peak.
Tavg
The provider's average wave period.
Tm02
A mean period calculated from the wave spectrum.
Tz
Mean zero-crossing period.
Reported
A legacy value whose period type was not recorded.
Mixed
A daily or monthly mean containing more than one period type.

Wave power needs a genuine energy period (Te). SurfHog does not substitute Tp, Tavg, Tm02 or Tz when Te is missing.

What does buoy wave power mean?

kW/m means kilowatts of wave power per metre of wave crest. It describes the rate at which the observed sea state carries energy past the buoy.

Unlike the shore-directed forecast value, buoy wave power is the total power at the observation point. It is not projected towards a particular beach and does not predict breaking wave height.

In deep water, wave power can be calculated with:

P is approximately 0.49 times significant wave height squared times wave energy period.

P is power in kW/m, Hs is significant wave height in metres, and Te is wave energy period in seconds.

  • Provider-reported power is used when available.
  • Otherwise, a value is calculated only when both significant height and a genuine energy period are available. The ≈ symbol marks calculated values.
  • A dash is shown instead of substituting peak, Tm02, zero-crossing or other period measurements.
  • Daily and monthly figures use the mean of hourly-normalized observation power values; they are not calculated from mean height and period.

Wave direction, spectrum, water depth and local bathymetry still matter. Wave power is best read alongside height, period and direction rather than as a standalone surf-quality score.

The observation data displayed on this page is from the UK Met Office.

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