Waves in Nanwalek

Hourly wave forecast for 7 days · updated today, Wednesday, October 28, at 5:35 pm (AKDT)

Now · significant height 4.2 ft

Sea state: Moderate · Douglas 4
Period: 4.8 s · SSE
Swell: 1.4 ft · 5 s
Highest expected: 8.8 ft

Today the sea at Nanwalek is moderate: 4.2 ft waves with a period of 4.8 s from the south-southeast. The swell, 1.4 ft at 5 s, comes from the south-southwest. Biggest waves: Tuesday 3, with waves up to 7.9 ft (moderate).

Wave height, next 7 days

2.04.06.08.0 ft 7.9 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 common2.1 ft
Significant4.2 ft
Highest expected8.8 ft

One wave in seven is higher than the significant height, and about 3 times a day one reaches 8.8 ft. Before heading out, expect waves of up to 8.8 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	1.6 ft–4.1 ft
4	Moderate · today	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	4.7 ft	Moderate	SSE	7 s	1.4 ft SSW	19 mph SE
Thu 29	5.9 ft	Moderate	SSE	6 s	2.0 ft SSW	26 mph ESE
Fri 30	6.3 ft	Moderate	S	7 s	3.2 ft SSE	20 mph SSE
Sat 31	4.3 ft	Moderate	SSE	6 s	2.3 ft SSE	15 mph ESE
Sun 1	2.8 ft	Slight	SE	7 s	2.0 ft SE	6 mph NNE
Mon 2	7.3 ft	Moderate	SE	7 s	2.4 ft S	32 mph ESE
Tue 3	7.9 ft	Moderate	SE	7 s	4.3 ft SSE	32 mph ESE

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	2.0 ft	1.6 ft	1.5 ft	2.2 ft	3.0 ft	3.7 ft	4.3 ft	4.6 ft
Period	6.4 s	6.5 s	6.3 s	4.7 s	4.4 s	4.7 s	4.9 s	4.9 s
Direction	WSW	SSW	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE	SSE
Swell	1.4 ft · 3 s	1.1 ft · 6 s	1.0 ft · 7 s	0.9 ft · 8 s	1.2 ft · 5 s	1.4 ft · 4 s	1.4 ft · 5 s	1.2 ft · 5 s
Wind (mph)	5 ESE	6 E	11 ESE	16 ESE	16 SE	18 SE	19 SE	19 SE

Previous days

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

Day	Max wave	Period	Swell
Tue 27	3.9 ft W	7 s	3.3 ft W
Mon 26	4.6 ft SW	6 s	3.0 ft SSW
Sun 25	3.9 ft S	7 s	3.0 ft SSW
Sat 24	3.9 ft SSE	5 s	1.0 ft SSE
Fri 23	3.6 ft ESE	6 s	1.6 ft NE
Thu 22	3.9 ft WNW	5 s	3.0 ft W
Wed 21	8.9 ft W	7 s	5.9 ft WSW

Show all 14 days

Day	Max wave	Period	Swell
Tue 20	8.2 ft WSW	7 s	3.0 ft S
Mon 19	4.3 ft SE	6 s	3.0 ft ESE
Sun 18	5.2 ft WSW	6 s	3.3 ft WSW
Sat 17	6.6 ft W	7 s	5.2 ft WSW
Fri 16	3.6 ft SSE	9 s	2.3 ft SSE
Thu 15	6.9 ft E	8 s	5.2 ft NE
Wed 14	7.5 ft ESE	9 s	4.6 ft SSE

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 NanwalekQuestions

How are the waves today in Nanwalek?

Moderate (4.2 ft with a period of 4.8 s from the south-southeast). The highest wave to expect is around 8.8 ft.

Which day will have the biggest waves this week?

Tuesday 3, with waves up to 7.9 ft (moderate).

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 8.8 ft.

More about Nanwalek today

Waves near Nanwalek

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 2.1 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 5:35 pm (local time).

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