Updates on Wave Coupling for the next Global Forecast System GFSv17

The medium range weather deterministic forecast model for NCEP is the Global Forecast System. The operational version (GFSv16) is one-way coupled from the atmospheric model, the finite volume cubed sphere dynamical core FV3 to the wave model, WAVEWATCH III. The next version, GFSv17, will include two new components, the MOM6 ocean model and the CICE6 ice model. This implementation leverages the UFS Application for Medium Range Weather (MRW) and Sub-seasonal to Seasonal (S2S) and the UFS community at large. A major goal for GFSv17 is to employ a UFS-based fully coupled atmosphere-land-ocean-ice-wave model. Specifically for the wave model, updates include having input from the atmosphere, ocean, and ice components and to utilize unstructured grids. Unstructured grids allow for improved scalability and additional resolution as desired. This presentation will provide a status update on the wave component in GFSv17 and its current performance in high impact events.