Exercise Pacific Wave 2015: 2-6 FEBRUARY 2015
At its 25th Session the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Pacific Tsu/nami Warning and Mitigation System (ICG/PTWS-XXV, Vladivostok, Russian Federation, 9–11 September 2013) approved the conduct of Exercise Pacific Wave 2015 (PacWave15) during the first Quarter of 2015 to practise using the Operational PTWC Enhanced Products. At its fourth meeting in July 2014 the PTWS Steering Committee (SC) endorsed the recommendation of the Task Team for the format and conduct of PacWave15 and set the dates to be between 2–6 February 2015. Accordingly, PacWave15 will be an important warning centre milestone preparedness activity.
The aim of PacWave15 is to test the new Operational PTWC Enhanced Products of the PTWS. PacWave15 will simulate Pacific countries receiving Tsunami Threat messages containing wave amplitude forecasts. Member States may then use the information in their decision making to assess their national threat. The Exercise will include multiple scenarios to allow use of a distant or regional event, and will be conducted in real time during the daytime. The exercise is being overseen by the Task Team on PacWave15 (ICG/PTWS-XXV.1, Appendix) co-chaired by New Zealand and ITIC.
Forty-two Pacific countries plan to participate in Exercise Pacific Wave 2015 (PacWave15) to test their receipt and use of the PTWC's New Enhanced Products for the PTWS. Countries will choose from among six Pacific scenarios to receive live international exercise messages from the PTWC and the Japan NWPTAC. The PTWC products, which became operational on October 1, 2014, are based on numerical forecast models that calculate expected wave heights. Text products continue to be issued publicly, with additional graphical forecast products sent to country Tsunami Warning Focal Points to aid them in their hazard assessment and warning decision-making. PacWave15 is the fifth exercise since the activity started in 2006. The Exercise is being conducted under the framework of the IOC's ICG/PTWS, and overseen by a task team chaired by New Zealand and ITIC. Click here for Summary Report (IOC TS 117).
Exercise Documents
Document Title |
Exercise Pacific Wave 2015 - Summary Report (TS 117, April 2015) (PDF, 2.5 MB) contains Volume 1 (exercise manual) and Volume 2 (evaluation results) |
Exercise Pacific Wave 2015 - IOC Information |
Exercise Pacific Wave 13 Summary Report - Final (PDF, 8.17 MB) |
How to Plan, Conduct, and Evaluate Tsunami Exercises IOC Manual and Guides 58, 2013) |
PTWC Enhanced Products User’s Guide for the PTWC Enhanced Products for the PTWS (IOC TS 105 rev, Aug 2014)
PTWC New Enhanced Products - 1 page Information Sheet (Sep 2014) (Light PDF, 700 KB) PTWC New Enhanced Products - Overview (Sep 2014) (PPT, 12 MB; PDF, 7 MB) Start of Issuance of PTWS PTWC Enhanced Products, 0000 UTC, 1 October 2014 |
IOC Tsunami Warning Focal Point (TWFP) and National Tsunami Warning Center (NTWC) Definitions (IOC Executive Council, July 2014) (PDF, 53 KB) Updating information on National Tsunami Warning Centres (NTWC) and Tsunami Warning Focal Points (TWFP) for the PTWS region according to new definitions (23 January 2015) |
PacWave15 Overview - Summary Powerpoint (Feb 2015) |
PacWave15 Scenarios
TTT PacWave11 scenarios (Nansei-Shoto, Tonga, Colombia-Ecuador)
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PacWave15 Master Schedule of Events List (MSEL) (PTWC, NWPTAC)
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PacWave15 Scenarios - Messages
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PacWave15 Exercise Evaluation Form (available starting 5 February 2015) For reference, fillable PDF-format is also provided.
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PacWave15 - UNESCO Press Release |
PacWave15 National Contacts, Country Participation, 1 February 2015 (PDF, 84 KB) |