MONITORING SYSTEM

MONITORING SYSTEM

Presently, directional nearshore wave data are available at six locations within the Long

Island, New York coastal area (Fig. 1). Nearshore data are being collected from gauges at

Shinnecock Inlet, Westhampton Beach, Fire Island Inlet, Jones Inlet, and Coney Island. The

Shinnecock, Jones and Fire Island are pressure gauge-current meter (PUV) gauges and the

Westhampton and Coney Island gauges are pressure gauge arrays. Offshore wave data are

available from National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) Buoy 44025, upgraded to directional

capability through sponsorship of the Corps' New York District. The buoy is located about

25 nautical miles south of Fire Island Inlet. Table 1 lists the locations of the wave gauges.

All wave gauges except the Fire Island gauge, which is self-recording, report data in

near-real time via the World Wide Web for display, processing, and archiving. The

subsurface gauges are cabled to shore, where time-series data are transmitted to servers via

telephone landlines. Data from the PUV gauges are processed by the server applying

traditional spectral analysis techniques (Grosskopf, et al. 1983) and then added to the data

archive. The data collected by Buoy 44025 are made available by the NDBC on the web in

bulk parameter form. Because the spectra are not made available, they are synthesized for

model boundary input as described below.

Supplemental data are collected to enhance understanding of the coastal processes and

the accuracy of wave modeling, especially in the vicinity of tidal inlets (Fig. 1). Wind and

atmospheric pressure are measured at Shinnecock and Jones Inlets. Water level and current

measurements are also collected along the inlet/bay system because the nearshore wave

model can incorporate circulation model results to account for the wave and current

interaction at inlets (Smith, Resio, and Zundel 1999).

Block Island

Sound

Long Island Sound

Montauk

Point

Shinnecock

Bay

Manhattan

Moriches

Bay

Shinnecock

Long Island

Inlet

Moriches

Inlet

Great South Bay

Fire Island

E. Rockaway

Inlet

Jones

Rockaway Inlet

Scale

Inlet

Atlantic Ocean

Kilometers

Instrument Legend

wave gauge;

current meter;

tide (water level) gauge;

meteorological station

Fig. 1. Long Island overall coastal monitoring system, 1998-2002.