Coastal oceanography focuses on understanding the dynamic physical processes that occur where land meets sea—a region of intense energy exchange, variability, and change. Among these processes, ocean waves play a central role: they transfer energy across the air–sea interface, drive nearshore circulation, and modulate mixing, set-up, and extreme water levels. Waves interact continuously with tides and currents to produce variability that spans a wide range of spatial and temporal scales, from individual storm events to seasonal and interannual fluctuations. Recent research highlights how this wave-driven variability shapes coastal energy budgets, influences upwelling and stratification, and governs the response of coastal systems to changing conditions. However, mounting pressures from climate change and extreme weather events have introduced new uncertainties in predicting coastal wave climates and their variability. While significant progress has been made through satellite observations, autonomous platforms, and numerical wave modelling, gaps remain in linking these components across scales and improving predictive skill. The growing use of data-driven and machine learning methods offers promise in enhancing process understanding, yet translating these insights into actionable prediction continues to be a challenge.
This Research Topic aims to advance the understanding of coastal ocean waves and variability through the integration of observations, numerical models, and emerging data-driven approaches. It seeks to identify the physical mechanisms governing wave dynamics and wave-driven variability in coastal systems, and to explore how these are influenced by climate variability and extreme events. The overarching objective is to improve predictive capabilities for coastal wave climates and their variability, informing hazard mitigation and adaptation strategies. This initiative also aims to foster collaboration between observational scientists, numerical modellers, and data scientists to bridge process understanding and prediction.
To gather further insights into the dynamics shaping coastal wave variability, we welcome contributions encompassing both regional and global perspectives, as well as diverse methodological approaches. Studies may include, but are not limited to, process-based investigations, statistical or data-driven models, and scenario analyses. We welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes: • Coastal wave dynamics and wave climate • Wave–current–tide interactions and multi-scale variability • Wave-driven circulation, set-up, and nearshore processes • Wave contributions to coastal mixing and stratification • Extreme wave events and storm-driven variability • Climate variability and long-term change in coastal wave climates • Numerical and data-driven modelling of coastal waves • Remote sensing and in-situ observation of coastal wave fields • Coastal ecosystem–physical process interactions (e.g., mangroves, coral reefs)
Article types and fees
This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:
Brief Research Report
Community Case Study
Data Report
Editorial
FAIR² Data
General Commentary
Hypothesis and Theory
Methods
Mini Review
Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.
Article types
This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:
Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
