The Draupner wave, a single giant wave measured on New Years Day 1995, finally confirmed the existence of freak waves, which had previously been considered near-mythical.

The Draupner wave is the name for the first freak wave positively confirmed following measurements at the Draupner oil platform in the North Sea off Norway on January 1, 1995. During this event, minor damage was inflicted on the platform, confirming that the reading was valid. In an area with significant wave height of approximately 12m, a freak wave with a peak elevation of 18.5m occurred. The Draupner wave, a single giant wave measured on New Years Day 1995, finally confirmed the existence of freak waves, which had previously been considered near-mythical Freak waves, also known as rogue waves or monster waves, are relatively large and spontaneous ocean surface waves which can sink even... An oil platform is a large structure used to house workers and machinery needed to drill and then produce oil and natural gas in the ocean. ... The North Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean, located between the coasts of Norway and Denmark in the east, the coast of the British Isles in the west, and the German, Dutch, Belgian and French coasts in the south. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Engineer Paul Taylor estimated the Draupner wave was a one in 200,000 wave. Prior to this measurement, freak waves were only known through anecdotal evidence from ships that had encountered them. The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ...

References

• Haver S (5 August 2003). Freak wave event at Draupner jacket January 1 1995. (PDF)

• Taylor PH. The shape of the Draupner Wave of 1st January 1995 (PDF) retrieved 2 April 2006.