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MFWAM Global (Copernicus Marine)

What this model is

This entry documents Météo-France's global MFWAM wave forecast as distributed through the Copernicus Marine Service (product identifier GLOBAL_ANALYSISFORECAST_WAV_001_027).

MFWAM is a third-generation spectral ocean wave model derived from the WAM model and operated by Météo-France. The Copernicus Marine global product runs MFWAM on a 1/12° grid (~8 km) with multi-satellite data assimilation of significant wave height and Sentinel-1 SAR wave spectra. It provides a 10-day forecast twice daily, with a 2-year rolling archive of analyses available through the Marine Data Store.

Météo-France also distributes a separate global MFWAM product (GLOB01 at 0.1°) through its national data portal. That product is a distinct operational product run with different forcing and output cadence — see the MFWAM GLOB01 entry for details.

The official Copernicus Marine product name is "Global Ocean Wave Analysis and Forecast." The system name in Météo-France's internal nomenclature is GLO12v3.

Who runs it

  • Originating organization: Météo-France (Global Monitoring and Forecasting Centre for the Copernicus Marine global wave product)
  • Country / region: France (operator) / European Union (distribution)
  • Distribution: Copernicus Marine Service (Mercator Ocean International)

What area it covers

  • Coverage: Global
  • Domain bounds: 180°W – 180°E, 89°S – 90°N
  • Grid dimensions: 4320 × 2041 (regular lat-lon)

Basic details

  • Model type: Global deterministic wave model (with data assimilation)
  • Core wave model: MFWAM (ECWAM-IFS source code, cycle 41R1)
  • System name: GLO12v3
  • Horizontal resolution: 1/12° (~8 km)
  • Spectral resolution: 24 directions × 30 frequencies
  • Forecast length: 10 days (240 hours)
  • Update frequency: 2× daily (00 and 12 UTC)
  • Temporal output resolution: 3-hourly instantaneous (at 00, 03, 06, 09, 12, 15, 18, 21 UTC)
  • Archive: 2-year rolling analysis archive on the Marine Data Store
  • Bathymetry: ETOPO2 / NOAA

Forcing

  • Atmospheric forcing: ECMWF wind and ice fraction
    • 6-hourly analysis
    • 3-hourly forecasts
    • Native forcing resolution: 1/10°

Analyses are performed 4 times per day (00, 06, 12, 18 UTC) internally with updated ECMWF forcings; the product is delivered twice daily (00 and 12 UTC) to the Marine Data Store.

Data assimilation

The Copernicus Marine global MFWAM uses Optimal Interpolation with a daily assimilation cycle and assimilates observations from multiple satellite missions:

Significant wave height (SWH) from altimeters

  • Jason-3
  • SARAL
  • CryoSat-2
  • Sentinel-3 A and Sentinel-3 B
  • CFOSAT (SWIM-nadir instrument)
  • Sentinel-6

Wave spectra

  • Sentinel-1 SAR wave spectra

This multi-satellite assimilation is the principal operational differentiator between this product and Météo-France's GLOB01 distribution.

What it provides

The Copernicus Marine product provides full integrated wave parameters and partitioned swell fields:

Total wave spectrum parameters

  • Spectral significant wave height (Hm0)
  • Wave periods: spectral moments (-1,0), (0,2), peak period (Tp)
  • Mean wave direction and principal direction at spectral peak
  • Stokes drift (U and V components)
  • Maximum crest-to-trough wave height (VCMX)
  • Height of the highest crest (VMXL)

Partitioned fields

  • Wind wave: height, period, direction
  • Primary swell: height, period, direction
  • Secondary swell: height, period, direction

Static file

  • Bathymetry (separate static dataset)

Data availability

  • Is the data free? Yes (registration required)
  • Is the data downloadable? Yes
  • Data formats: NetCDF-4 (CF-1.6 conventions)
  • Product identifier: GLOBAL_ANALYSISFORECAST_WAV_001_027
  • Dataset identifiers:
    • cmems_mod_glo_wav_anfc_0.083deg_PT3H-i (forecast and analysis fields)
    • cmems_mod_wav_anfc_0.083deg_static (bathymetry)
  • Official access: https://data.marine.copernicus.eu/product/GLOBAL_ANALYSISFORECAST_WAV_001_027/description
  • Licence: Copernicus Marine Service licence (free with registration)

Version history

November 2024

  • New variable added: height of the highest crest (VMXL)

November 2023

  • Assessment of GLO12V4 vs GLO12V3 current data (upstream data change)
  • New variable added: maximum crest-to-trough wave height (VCMX)

November 2022

  • New nomenclature and new template

December 2021

  • Upgrade to twice-daily delivery

December 2020

  • Forecast length extended to 10 days
  • SWIM-nadir SWH from CFOSAT added to the data assimilation system

January 2018

  • Initial product release (GLOBAL_ANALYSISFORECAST_WAV_001_027 V1.0)

Relationship to other MFWAM products

Météo-France runs MFWAM in multiple operational configurations distributed through different channels:

  • MFWAM GLOB01 — global 0.1° product distributed via data.gouv.fr, with ARPEGE wind forcing and hourly short-range output
  • This entry (Copernicus) — global 1/12° product distributed via Copernicus Marine, with ECMWF forcing and multi-satellite wave data assimilation
  • MFWAM High-Resolution (FRANGP0025) — European regional 0.025° product nested within the Météo-France MFWAM chain

Users primarily interested in global wave forecasting with observational wave-data assimilation should use this entry's Copernicus product. Users who need hourly short-range output without registration should use GLOB01. Users focused on European coastal and offshore conditions should look to FRANGP0025.

Notes

  • The Copernicus Marine product is part of the Global Monitoring and Forecasting Centre (GLO MFC) portfolio, alongside the coupled physics product GLOBAL_ANALYSISFORECAST_PHY_001_027. The wave product does not share initial conditions or state with the physics product directly, but they are designed as a coherent operational pair.
  • The product is not coupled to an ocean physics model in the same way as BALWAM (which ingests time-varying currents, sea surface height, and ice concentration from a companion Baltic ocean system). The Copernicus Marine global MFWAM is forced only by ECMWF winds and ice fraction.
  • Copernicus Marine is the same distribution channel used for BALWAM, Mediterranean, Arctic, Black Sea, and several other regional wave products, all distributed through the Marine Data Store infrastructure.

Official documentation