Wave sensors deployed along the Florida coast

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has deployed 13 wave sensors along Florida’s Gulf Coast between Venice and Panama City in preparation for Hurricane Helene, to gather data on the storm’s impact as it approaches the state.

The wave sensors are housed in vented aluminum pipes that, according to the USGS, are a few inches wide and about a foot long. They are installed on bridges, piers and other structures that scientists have determined have a reasonable chance of surviving the storm.

“The USGS had five teams (10 people) in the field yesterday, working as quickly and efficiently as possible to put wave sensors in place where the storm is anticipated to travel and have the most intense impacts,” said Kevin Grimsley, who is part of this deployment effort and the associate center director for data with the USGS Caribbean-Florida Water Science Center. “In addition to the sensors, the USGS activated three seasonal hurricane gauges in Florida in Islamorada, Fort Myers and Panama City to monitor water levels in real-time. The USGS also has hundreds of streamgages established throughout the state to help monitor potential flood conditions along the coast and inland.”

USGS scientists deploy wave sensors along Florida’s coast ahead of Hurricane Helene. Photos provided.

The sensors will measure water levels and give insight on factors such as wave height and frequency, storm tide and storm surge. The sensors will be in place from before Helene arrives until the storm departs. Once the storm is over, scientists will retrieve the instruments and analyze the collected data.

According to the USGS, the information gathered can be used to fine-tune future storm surge and coastal change forecasts. The sensor data can help identify areas hit the hardest by storm surges and guide emergency responders and local officials with recovery efforts. Insight can also help inform flood insurance maps and building codes to improve structural designs for public safety.

Data and time-lapse videos from coastal cameras are publicly accessible on the USGS’s Flood Event Viewer webpage. Screengrab: USGS.gov.

“Studying Helene and other storms gives real-world insight that’s valuable in helping with community preparedness,” said Grimsley. “Wave sensors capture data at a very high frequency, so we are able to receive extremely detailed and comprehensive records.”

Potential impacts from Helene include the danger of life-threatening storm surges along the entire west coast of the Florida peninsula and Big Bend area, as well as devastating hurricane-force winds across portions of northern Florida, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Information on the sensor deployment and the incoming data will be available online on the USGS Flood Event Viewer.

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