GOOD news surfers: waves in the north-east Pacific are getting taller, and the height of the most extreme 鈥�100-year鈥� waves is increasing fastest.
Previous data had shown wave height to be increasing in the north-east Pacific and north Atlantic since the late 1980s. Now measurements from a moored off the Oregon coast since the mid-1970s indicate that the 鈥�100-year鈥� waves 鈥� the monster waves with a 1 per cent chance of occurring in any given year 鈥� could be 40 per cent larger than previous estimates, at 14 metres high.
of Oregon State University, who carried out the analysis, found that average wave heights increased at the rate of 1.5 centimetres per year, while each year鈥檚 biggest wave increased by an average of 10 centimetres per year. He says climate change is a likely culprit, but more measurements are needed to confirm this.
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