Offshore and nearshore wave energy assessment around the Korean Peninsula

A wave resource assessment is presented for the region around the Korean peninsula. Offshore wave power was obtained from significant wave heights and peak periods, and wave directions hindcast for the period of 1979–2003. The spatial distributions for the seasonal and annual averaged wave power were obtained on a 1/6° grid covering the longitudes of 117–143°E and latitudes of 20–50°N. The highest monthly averaged wave power (25 kW/m) was observed on the southwestern side of the peninsula in winter. In order to obtain the wave power around Hongdo, numerical simulations were performed with respect to the monthly averaged waves. The correlation between the significant wave height and energy period was considered to adjust the nearshore wave power obtained by the numerical simulation. The correction procedure was validated from comparing the simulated data with wave buoy data. ► This study deals with the wave energy assessment around the Korean Peninsula with hindcast wave data. ► The highest monthly averaged wave power (25 kW/m) was observed on the southwestern side of the peninsula in winter. ► The nearshore wave energy was assessed by using nearshore wave simulation model (SWAN). ► A Correction factor was adopted to adjust the underestimation owing to the numerical simulation of representative wave. ► The correction factor was explicitly obtained in terms of the covariance of the energy period and significant wave height.