Sea levels in the western Pacific have been falling over the last few months which is in keeping with the El Nino conditions that are developing. El Nino tends to result in lower sea levels on Kosrae. It is likely that tide levels on Kosrae will be close to normal over the next three months
However, the December to February period is when large tides occur on Kosrae. The largest king tides will be experienced between:
- 21 – 25 December (with tides between the 6 – 8 December also large)
- 19 – 23 January (with tides between 05 – 07 January also large)
- 17 – 21 February
Given the lower sea-levels that are occurring at present it is unlikely that these tides will be quite as high as was experienced in January/February last year. However if large waves, swell or strong winds occur at the same time as high tide, flooding of low-lying land and overwashing of exposed sections of the circumferential road will occur.
The tide calendars for December, January and February (tide prediction + seasonal sea-level forecast), are now available in both English and Kosraean. These can be downloaded below:
English: December-2014 | January-2015 | February-2015
Kosraean: Tisampuh_2014 | Janwuri-2015 | Febwuri-2015
Copies of the tide calendars can also be obtained from either the KIRMA office or PACC office in Tofol.
