SWAN — The Complete Guide: A Free Shallow-Water Wave Model for Coastal Structure Design
SWAN is an open-source spectral wave model developed at Delft University of Technology. It takes a wind field or offshore wave conditions and computes what actually reaches the shoreline, the breakwater or the harbour entrance. It is the academic standard in the field, and it also serves as the wave module inside larger packages.
SWAN
Delft University of Technology
Nearshore wave model for shallow water — essential input for jetty and breakwater design.
Get it from the vendorWhat you get
- Wind wave generation — wave growth over bays, lakes and open sea.
- Transformation into shallow water — refraction, shoaling and depth-induced breaking.
- Energy losses — bottom friction and whitecapping.
- Currents — the effect of tidal or river currents on the waves.
- Grids — rectangular, curvilinear or unstructured, with nesting from a large domain into a detailed one.
What it does not do
SWAN computes an averaged spectrum rather than individual waves, so diffraction around a breakwater head or inside a harbour basin is only approximated. For wave penetration into harbours, resonance and overtopping of structures, use a wave-resolving model such as SWASH.
Related tools
For currents and sediment together with waves — Delft3D. For storm events on sandy coasts — XBeach. For a finite element alternative — TELEMAC-MASCARET.
SWASH
Delft University of Technology
Non-hydrostatic coastal flow model — waves in harbours, overtopping of structures and estuary currents.
Get it from the vendorDelft3D
Deltares
Coastal and marine engineering — currents, waves, sediment transport and shoreline morphology.
Get it from the vendorXBeach
Deltares
Storm impact on the coast — overwash, dune erosion and barrier breaching in a single extreme event.
Get it from the vendor
TELEMAC-MASCARET
EDF / Consortium
Hydrodynamic system for rivers and coasts on unstructured meshes — flow, waves, sediment and quality.
Get it from the vendorThe bottom line
SWAN is the starting point for almost every marine design: it delivers wave height, period and direction at the structure, free and open source.