ИСТИНА

The object of this study is the wind wave regime of the Baltic, Black and Caspian seas. Parameters of wind waves were calculated by mean of the third-generation wind wave model SWAN; wind speed and direction were derived from the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis for the period from 1949 to 2010. The computations were carried out continuously for every year on rectangular grids with a spatial resolution of 5 km. The timestep of the computation was 30 minutes. Values of significant wave height, wave length and period, swell height and wave energy transport were calculated. The results of these computations are fields of seasonal average and maximal wave parameters. Areas with highest waves in the Baltic Sea are located in its central part, in the southwestern and northeastern parts in the Black Sea and in the central and southern parts of the Caspian Sea. Wave heights possible once in 100 years were assessed by the Initial Distribution Method. The interannual variability of storms was estimated. Thus, its trend increases in the Baltic Sea, remains stable in the Black Sea and decreases in the Caspian Sea.