A mammoth rogue wave off Uclueletsa国际传媒檚 coast has brought dreams of wielding the oceansa国际传媒檚 power as an alternative energy source crashing back into the spotlight.
The 17.6 metre rogue wave was recorded off Amphitrite Bank near Ucuelet in November 2020 by MarineLabs Data Systems, which believes it is the sa国际传媒渕ost extreme rogue wave ever recorded.sa国际传媒�
The wave came to light as the subject of a
sa国际传媒淧roportionally, the Ucluelet wave is likely the most extreme rogue wave ever recorded,sa国际传媒� Gemmrich said through a media release. sa国际传媒淥nly a few rogue waves in high sea states have been observed directly, and nothing of this magnitude. The probability of such an event occurring is once in 1,300 years.sa国际传媒�
It was recorded by one of 26 sensor buoys MarineLabs has installed across North America as part of the companysa国际传媒檚 CoastAware platform, according to the release.
sa国际传媒淭he unpredictability of rogue waves, and the sheer power of these sa国际传媒榳alls of watersa国际传媒� can make them incredibly dangerous to marine operations and the public,sa国际传媒� said MarineLabs CEO Dr. Scott Beatty. sa国际传媒淭he potential of predicting rogue waves remains an open question, but our data is helping to better understand when, where and how rogue waves form, and the risks that they pose.sa国际传媒�
MarineLabs plans to more than double its CoastAware program this year and expects to have over 70 sensor buoys in place by the end of 2022.
sa国际传媒淲e are aiming to improve safety and decision-making for marine operations and coastal communities through widespread measurement of the worldsa国际传媒檚 coastlines,sa国际传媒� Beatty said.
sa国际传媒淐apturing this once-in-a-millennium wave, right in our backyard, is a thrilling indicator of the power of coastal intelligence to transform marine safety.sa国际传媒�
Geoff Lyons, who served as Uclueletsa国际传媒檚 CAO from 2002-2009 and as a municipal councillor from 2011-2014, has and hopes the rogue wave report renews local interest in the potential power supply.
Congrats to ! We are excited to be providing super high resolution real-time data for their Ocean Wave Energy project.
sa国际传媒� MarineLabs (@MarineLabs_hq)
Lyons recalled BC Hydro looking into the feasibility of wave energy in Ucluelet in 2000, but suggested Hydrosa国际传媒檚 focus was heavily committed to establishing its Site C dam at the time.
sa国际传媒淭hey changed their mind and decided they were focusing on Site C, so we lost the ability for Hydro to subsidize this, but we were so excited we decided to try to get someone to come in independently,sa国际传媒� he said. sa国际传媒淲e were promoting Ucluelet as the wave energy capital of Canadasa国际传媒he Bay of Fundy has got itsa国际传媒檚 tides, but wesa国际传媒檝e got waves that could generate electricity.sa国际传媒�
He said Carnegie Energy representatives came to Ucluelet to test the wave strength, but decided to pursue an opportunity in Australia instead.
sa国际传媒淭hey had a device which was basically anchored to the seabed and floating around slightly submerged and it went up and down on a hydraulic cylinder basis and produced energy going up and going down,sa国际传媒� he said. sa国际传媒淚t was an area about the size of two soccer fields, which would generate two to three kilowatts, which I think would be enough to suffice for Ucluelet and then theresa国际传媒檚 the option of putting in more and then backfeeding into the BC Hydro system so that we could sell it.sa国际传媒�
He said wave technology has made sa国际传媒済reat leapssa国际传媒� since then and that University of Victoria researchers have installed several buoys in local waters to monitor the energy potential, but investors and sufficient government support have been tough to attract.
sa国际传媒淲e just couldnsa国际传媒檛 get any traction from people,sa国际传媒� he said. sa国际传媒淎t the moment, we cansa国际传媒檛 find a proponent to come in and test it.sa国际传媒�
He hopes Uclueletsa国际传媒檚 municipal council will lobby for more opportunities to develop wave energy.
sa国际传媒淚sa国际传媒檇 like to think that it could be back on the table as a completely viable source. Itsa国际传媒檚 far more reliable than solar or wind because the waves keep coming, they donsa国际传媒檛 take quiet days and they donsa国际传媒檛 go away when the sun sets,sa国际传媒� he said. sa国际传媒淚t would be a great opportunity for Uclueletsa国际传媒 honestly believe itsa国际传媒檚 something that Ucluelet should seriously pursue and Isa国际传媒檓 quite happy to donate my free time to help anybody who wants to do it. I fought for 20 years and we did that; Isa国际传媒檇 like to see a wave energy project happen as well.sa国际传媒�
andrew.bailey@westerlynews.ca
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