Wave and sea level monitoring and prediction in the service module of the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS)

The need for a Global Ocean Observing System Global (GOOS) is now widely appreciated. Parts of GOOS are currently being implemented already. In this paper, written on the request of the joint Scientific and Technical Committee of GOOS, we present some of the scientific issues that need to be addressed for the further development of the Ocean and Marine Meteorology Service module of GOOS. This module is concerned with monitoring and prediction of sea level (both tsunamis and storm surges) and wind driven waves (wind–sea and swell), among other things. For each of these we discuss the current state-of-the-art, indicate what observations are needed and make suggestions for future modelling development.