AI system predicting rogue waves to be deployed in 16 coastal regions

Taipei, Aug. 20 (CNA) The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Wednesday said it has developed an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered system that predicts the occurrence of rogue waves in conjunction with National Cheng Kung University (NCKU).

The system predicts rogue waves over the next 24 hours and will be implemented in 16 of Taiwan's coastal municipalities by the end of 2025, said Fong Chin-tzu (馮欽賜), deputy administrator of the CWA, at a press event.

Doong Dong-jiing (董東璟), head of the NCKU Coastal Ocean Monitoring Center (COMC), which assisted the CWA establish the system, told the press that a total of 430 rogue wave incidents have been recorded over the past 25 years, causing 750 casualties, one-third of which were fatalities.

According to NCKU data, most occurrences were in Keelung City, with the northeastern coast, followed by Yilan County and Hualien County, the CWA said.

As a maritime nation, Taiwan encourages its people to love and understand the sea, including an awareness of the unpredictable danger inherent in marine activities, Fong said.

Rogue waves are not traceable like the weather but occur as a result of specific environmental conditions, which requires more precise predictions than simply issuing warnings of long waves, he said.

The newly developed system uses shore-based optical cameras to collect images, which are analyzed by AI to identify abnormal waves. The data is then integrated with the CWA's wave models and AI prediction system to estimate the probability of a rogue wave within the next 24 hours, the CWA said.

The new system was introduced in June at scenic spots on the north coast and northeastern cape, which show visitors timely sea conditions and possible warnings of abnormal waves.

The New Taipei Fire Department and Ruifang District Office have also worked together to install a warning system at Bianfudong (Bat Cave) which issues timely alerts to disaster response personnel to evacuate visitors when dangerous waves are detected, the CWA said.