Rogue wave

[1] Recent research suggests sea state crest-trough correlation leading to linear superposition may be a dominant factor in predicting the frequency of rogue waves.

Once considered mythical and lacking hard evidence, rogue waves are now proven to exist and are known to be natural ocean phenomena.

During that event, minor damage was inflicted on the platform far above sea level, confirming the accuracy of the wave-height reading made by a downwards pointing laser sensor.

[12] In 2004, scientists using three weeks of radar images from European Space Agency satellites found ten rogue waves, each 25 metres (82 ft) or higher.

[13] A rogue wave is a natural ocean phenomenon that is not caused by land movement, only lasts briefly, occurs in a limited location, and most often happens far out at sea.

[1] Tsunamis are caused by a massive displacement of water, often resulting from sudden movements of the ocean floor, after which they propagate at high speed over a wide area.

[15] Rogue waves have been implicated in the loss of other vessels, including the Ocean Ranger, a semisubmersible mobile offshore drilling unit that sank in Canadian waters on 15 February 1982.

[16] In 2007, the United States' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) compiled a catalogue of more than 50 historical incidents probably associated with rogue waves.

[27] Research published in 2024 by TU Delft and other institutions has subsequently demonstrated that waves coming from multiple directions can grow up to four times steeper than previously imagined.

The wave was recorded in 1995 at Unit E of the Draupner platform, a gas pipeline support complex located in the North Sea about 160 km (100 miles) southwest from the southern tip of Norway.

The analysis of this event took a number of years and noted that "none of the state-of-the-art weather forecasts and wave models‍— the information upon which all ships, oil rigs, fisheries, and passenger boats rely‍— had predicted these behemoths."

[1][12][29][35][36] In 2004, the ESA MaxWave project identified more than 10 individual giant waves above 25 m (82 ft) in height during a short survey period of three weeks in a limited area of the South Atlantic.

[37][38] By 2007, it was further proven via satellite radar studies that waves with crest-to-trough heights of 20 to 30 m (66 to 98 ft) occur far more frequently than previously thought.

Professor Akhmediev of the Australian National University has stated that 10 rogue waves exist in the world's oceans at any moment.

The third incoming wave adds to the two accumulated backwashes and suddenly overloads the ship deck with large amounts of water.

[42] A 2012 study reported that in addition to the Peregrine soliton reaching up to about 3 times the height of the surrounding sea, a hierarchy of higher order wave solutions could also exist having progressively larger sizes, and demonstrated the creation of a "super rogue wave"— a breather around 5 times higher than surrounding waves‍— in a water tank.

A paper written by Craig B. Smith in 2007 reported on an incident in the North Atlantic, in which the submarine Grouper was hit by a 30-meter wave in calm seas.

The warm Agulhas Current runs to the southwest, while the dominant winds are westerlies, but since this thesis does not explain the existence of all waves that have been detected, several different mechanisms are likely, with localized variation.

[73] A number of research programmes are currently underway or have concluded whose focus is/was on rogue waves, including: Researchers at UCLA observed rogue-wave phenomena in microstructured optical fibers near the threshold of soliton supercontinuum generation and characterized the initial conditions for generating rogue waves in any medium.

[95] Research in optics has pointed out the role played by a Peregrine soliton that may explain those waves that appear and disappear without leaving a trace.

[96][97] Rogue waves in other media appear to be ubiquitous and have also been reported in liquid helium, in quantum mechanics,[98] in nonlinear optics, in microwave cavities,[99] in Bose–Einstein condensate,[100] in heat and diffusion,[101] and in finance.

A third comprehensive analysis was subsequently done by Douglas Faulkner, professor of marine architecture and ocean engineering at the University of Glasgow.

The deck cargo hatches on the Derbyshire were determined to be the key point of failure when the rogue wave washed over the ship.

[7] In November 1997, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted new rules covering survivability and structural requirements for bulk carriers of 150 m (490 ft) and upwards.

[134] Rogue waves present considerable danger for several reasons: they are rare, unpredictable, may appear suddenly or without warning, and can impact with tremendous force.

[117] Smith presented calculations using the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) Common Structural Rules for a typical bulk carrier.

[f][39] Peter Challenor, a scientist from the National Oceanography Centre in the United Kingdom, was quoted in Casey's book in 2010 as saying: "We don't have that random messy theory for nonlinear waves.

Therefore, a design criterion based on 11.0 m (36 ft) high waves seems inadequate when the risk of losing crew and cargo is considered.

[136] As an example, DNV GL, one of the world's largest international certification bodies and classification society with main expertise in technical assessment, advisory, and risk management publishes their Structure Design Load Principles which remain largely based on the Significant Wave Height, and as of January 2016, still have not included any allowance for rogue waves.

However, most new ships are built to the standards of the 12 members of the International Association of Classification Societies, which implemented two sets of common structural rules - one for oil tankers and one for bulk carriers, in 2006.