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The 17.6-meter wave recorded off Ucluelet, British Columbia, in November 2020 is often called the most extreme rogue wave on record—but that claim is about its size relative to nearby waves, not its absolute height. The 1995 Draupner wave in the North Sea was taller, at 25.6 meters.
What is the most extreme rogue wave ever recorded?
The Ucluelet wave is a leading candidate for the most extreme rogue wave recorded relative to the surrounding sea state. A MarineLabs buoy at Amphitrite Bank, about seven kilometers offshore from Ucluelet on Vancouver Island, measured it at 17.6 meters in November 2020. MarineLabs reported surrounding waves of approximately 6 meters, making the exceptional wave nearly three times as high as those around it. MarineLabs’ 2022 announcement quotes University of Victoria research physicist Johannes Gemmrich calling it, proportionally, likely the most extreme rogue wave ever recorded.
That distinction matters: Ucluelet was not the tallest single wave measured. The Draupner wave, recorded in the North Sea in 1995, reached 25.6 meters. So the answer depends on what “most extreme” means: Ucluelet stands out for its size compared with its neighbors; Draupner was taller in absolute height.
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How do Ucluelet and Draupner compare?
| Event | Measured wave height | Surrounding sea state | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ucluelet, British Columbia, November 2020 | 17.6 m | Approximately 6 m for surrounding waves, according to MarineLabs | Nearly three times the height of surrounding waves; likely the most extreme recorded proportionally, according to Gemmrich as quoted by MarineLabs |
| Draupner, North Sea, 1 January 1995 | 25.6 m; crest height 18.5 m | Significant wave height near 12 m | Taller in absolute height; its laser measurement confirmed that giant rogue waves occur |
The Draupner measurements and sea-state figure are reported by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). Its account says the measurement confirmed the existence of giant rogue waves, which sailors had previously reported anecdotally.
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What does “significant wave height” mean?
Significant wave height is a statistic describing the sea state, not the height of one particular wave. ECMWF defines it from the wave spectrum and says it closely corresponds to the mean height of the highest third of waves. It helps put an exceptional wave in context, but it should not be confused with the height of the single largest wave.
Researchers also use ratios to describe how unusual a wave is. For Draupner, a 2016 Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans article reports a maximum-wave-height-to-significant-wave-height ratio (Hmax/Hs) of 2.4 and a crest-to-significant-wave-height ratio of 1.55. The article notes that the commonly used Hmax/Hs threshold for a freak wave varies from 2 to 2.2. These are conventions, not a single universally agreed cutoff.
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How rare was the Ucluelet wave?
MarineLabs’ 2022 announcement attributes a “once in 1,300 years” probability estimate for the Ucluelet event to Gemmrich. Treat that as an estimate attached to that event, not as a universal return period for rogue waves. The announcement identifies and links the underlying Scientific Reports paper, but its statistical methods and assumptions are not established by the sources cited here; the estimate should therefore remain attributed rather than presented as a settled, general frequency.
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More broadly, a record at one location does not by itself describe how often similar waves occur everywhere. The probability of encountering an extreme depends on the region and the period being considered.
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What may have caused the Draupner wave?
ECMWF’s retrospective forecasts suggest that a southward-moving polar low and locally generated wind waves may have created partly crossing seas near the Draupner platform. This is a proposed explanation for conditions conducive to the wave, not proof of one definitive cause. Rogue-wave formation and prediction remain difficult; MarineLabs CEO Scott Beatty said in the company’s 2022 announcement that the potential for predicting rogue waves remains an open question.
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