[1][2] The wave, determined to be 25.6 m (84 ft) in height, was recorded on 1 January 1995 at Unit E of the Draupner platform,[3] a gas pipeline support complex located in the North Sea about 160 km (100 miles) southwest from the southern tip of Norway.

[4][a] The Draupner platform rig, located in the Norwegian North Sea and 16/11 160 km (99 mi) offshore from Norway, was built to withstand a calculated 1-in-10,000-years wave with a predicted height of 20 m (64 ft) and was fitted with state-of-the-art sensors, including a laser rangefinder wave recorder on the platform's underside.

[5] On 31 December, a low pressure system was located over Sweden, with a north-western motion.

Early the next day, a polar low would form over the Norwegian portion of the North Sea, which produced heavy winds that would set up the formation of the Draupner wave.

[6] The wave itself was first detected at 15:24 UTC on 1 January 1995 by a downward-pointing laser beam located on the Draupner S platform.