Waves in Chelem

Hourly wave forecast for 7 days · updated today, Thursday, October 29, at 12:04 am (CST)

Now · significant height 2.4 ft

Sea state: Slight · Douglas 3
Period: 5.0 s · NNE
Swell: 2.1 ft · 5 s
Highest expected: 4.9 ft

Today the sea at Chelem is slight: 2.4 ft waves with a period of 5.0 s from the north-northeast. The swell, 2.1 ft at 5 s, comes from the north-northeast.

Wave height, next 7 days

1.02.03.0 ft 2.4 ft Now

Significant height: the average of the highest third of the waves, what an observer would estimate by eye. Swell: waves arriving from far away, longer.

The waves you may find today

Most common1.2 ft
Significant2.4 ft
Highest expected4.9 ft

One wave in seven is higher than the significant height, and about 3 times a day one reaches 4.9 ft. Before heading out, expect waves of up to 4.9 ft.

The Douglas sea state scale

Degree	Name	Wave height
0	Calm (glassy)	0
1	Calm (rippled)	0.0 ft–0.3 ft
2	Smooth	0.3 ft–1.6 ft
3	Slight · today	1.6 ft–4.1 ft
4	Moderate	4.1 ft–8.2 ft
5	Rough	8.2 ft–13.1 ft
6	Very rough	13.1 ft–19.7 ft

Waves day by day

Day	Max wave	Sea state	Direction	Max period	Swell	Max wind
Today	2.4 ft	Slight	NNE	6 s	2.3 ft NNE	11 mph N
Fri 30	2.2 ft	Slight	NNE	6 s	2.2 ft NNE	10 mph ENE
Sat 31	2.0 ft	Slight	NNE	5 s	1.5 ft NNE	11 mph ENE
Sun 1	1.8 ft	Slight	NNE	5 s	1.0 ft NNE	9 mph ENE
Mon 2	1.3 ft	Smooth	NNE	4 s	1.1 ft N	9 mph NE
Tue 3	1.7 ft	Slight	NNE	5 s	1.0 ft NNE	9 mph ENE
Wed 4	1.6 ft	Smooth	NE	5 s	1.0 ft NNE	7 mph E

Today, every 3 hours

Time	12:00 am	3:00 am	6:00 am	9:00 am	12:00 pm	3:00 pm	6:00 pm	9:00 pm
Waves	2.4 ft	2.2 ft	2.2 ft	2.1 ft	2.1 ft	2.3 ft	2.4 ft	2.3 ft
Period	5.0 s	5.1 s	5.0 s	5.0 s	5.1 s	5.2 s	5.4 s	5.7 s
Direction	NNE	NNE	NNE	NNE	N	N	N	NNE
Swell	2.1 ft · 5 s	2.0 ft · 5 s	1.9 ft · 5 s	1.9 ft · 5 s	1.9 ft · 5 s	1.9 ft · 5 s	2.2 ft · 5 s	2.3 ft · 5 s
Wind (mph)	5 NNE	6 N	6 N	8 N	10 N	10 NNW	6 N	4 NNE

Previous days

The waves over the last 14 days. Tap a day to see it hour by hour.

Day	Max wave	Period	Swell
Wed 28	2.6 ft NNE	6 s	2.3 ft NNE
Tue 27	3.0 ft NNE	6 s	2.6 ft NNE
Mon 26	3.6 ft NNE	6 s	3.0 ft NNE
Sun 25	3.3 ft NNE	5 s	2.3 ft NNE
Sat 24	3.0 ft NNE	5 s	2.0 ft NNE
Fri 23	3.0 ft NNE	5 s	2.0 ft NNE
Thu 22	2.6 ft NNE	5 s	2.0 ft NNE

Show all 14 days

Day	Max wave	Period	Swell
Wed 21	3.3 ft NE	6 s	2.6 ft NNE
Tue 20	3.3 ft NE	7 s	2.6 ft NNE
Mon 19	3.6 ft NNE	8 s	3.3 ft NNE
Sun 18	4.6 ft N	10 s	4.3 ft N
Sat 17	3.9 ft NNE	9 s	3.0 ft NNE
Fri 16	2.0 ft NE	4 s	1.6 ft NE
Thu 15	2.0 ft NE	4 s	1.6 ft NE

These are the models at the start of each day (ECMWF and GFS; waves from Météo-France), not readings from a weather station: there can be differences at specific spots.

Questions about the waves in ChelemQuestions

How are the waves today in Chelem?

Slight (2.4 ft with a period of 5.0 s from the north-northeast). The highest wave to expect is around 4.9 ft.

Which day will have the biggest waves this week?

Thursday 29, with waves up to 2.4 ft (slight).

What is the wave period?

The time, in seconds, between two crests. With long periods (over 10 s) waves come from far away, are cleaner and break harder; with short periods they are wind waves, choppier.

What is significant wave height?

The average of the highest third of the waves. One in seven is higher and, a few times a day, one comes in at almost double: today, about 4.9 ft.

More about Chelem today

Waves near Chelem

Only places with a different forecast: spots a few miles apart share the same model cell and wouldn't add anything.

Learn more

Waves: Open-Meteo with Météo-France (MFWAM, up to 10 days) and ECMWF WAM, CC BY 4.0; wave grid point 8.0 mi away. Near the shore, the seabed and the shape of the coast change the waves.

Forecast from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0) with models from ECMWF, NOAA, Météo-France, DWD, Copernicus Marine and CAMS. Updated at 12:04 am (local time).

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