In September 2018, Super Typhoon "Mangkhut" swept across the South China Sea with peak intensity exceeding Category 17, with a cloud system diameter of 1,000 kilometers, making it one of the strongest typhoons globally that year. In the defense against this historic typhoon, China's domestically developed wave sensor system precisely captured real-time data on 10-meter-high waves, providing critical support for coastal regions to initiate the highest level of emergency response 48 hours in advance, showcasing a major breakthrough in China's marine monitoring technology.
At 11:00 PM on September 15, in waters 120 kilometers off the coast of Shanwei, an orange buoy swayed violently in the fierce winds and waves. This "marine sentinel," equipped with domestically produced high-precision wave sensors, captured a set of astonishing real-time data: effective wave height of 8.2 meters, with the maximum wave crest exceeding 14 meters!
"Traditional satellite remote sensing requires over 30 minutes for data processing, while our sensors transmit three-dimensional wave dynamics every 6 seconds," explained Li Haiyang, the project's chief engineer, pointing to the fluctuating curves on the monitoring screen. "Through artificial intelligence algorithms, the system predicted in advance that the giant waves would hit the coast in 1.5 hours."
In this race against the typhoon, China's domestically developed phased array radar wave height meter proved to be the decisive factor. The device functions like a "CT scan" for the ocean, capable of penetrating heavy rain to precisely capture the three-dimensional shape of waves.
As the warning was issued, emergency response mechanisms were immediately activated:
• The Shanwei Fisheries Administration used the Beidou system to send wave avoidance instructions to 852 fishing vessels
• The "South China Sea No. 7" drilling platform preemptively locked the valves of the oil production tree
• The Shenzhen-Shanwei Special Cooperation Zone evacuated over 1,200 personnel from coastal construction sites
"Half an hour after the evacuation was completed, a 15-meter-high wall of water crashed into the breakwater," recalled Captain Chen, who witnessed the event, still shaken. "If we had been half an hour later, my entire fleet would have been destroyed."
This technology has been deployed at 427 monitoring points along China's 18,000-kilometer coastline. According to the latest assessment by the Ministry of Emergency Management, the system has improved storm surge warning accuracy by 40% and reduced annual economic losses by over 1.5 billion yuan.
Of course, the above data is from 2018. Currently, China's marine wave sensor technology has made progress. The wave sensors produced by Asenhe can measure wave heights from 0.01 meters to 25 meters, providing wave height measurement technology with an accuracy of ±3%! The wave sensors produced by Asenhe operate at a frequency of 10 Hz, transmitting 9,000 data points every 15 minutes. Currently, Asenhe's wave sensors can measure the following types: wave spectrum, wave direction, and wave spectrum, with wave spectrum and wave direction capable of being monitored separately. Asenhe is willing to provide you with more personalized customization from wave sensors, wave spectrum buoys, inertial wave sensors, wave data buoys, wave height sensors, wave spectrum sensors... Asenhe looks forward to your inquiries and messages!!!
