Drift track simulation for past marine incidents using SARMAP

Once marine accident occurs, it is important to find the people or marine crafts adrift in the ocean in a timely fashion. For this, one has to be able to calculate or predict the tracks of the drifting objects or persons. This study used SARMAP, a search and rescue program developed by ASA (Applied Science Associates), to simulate drift tracks of accidents occurred previously in the Taiwan Seas and compared the results with the final rescue positions reported by the coast guard. For the wind and current, we used three types of data. These include: (1) Wind and current data from COASTMAP (a data base kept by the ASA), (2) Seasonal average currents in the Taiwan Seas form National Center for Ocean Research (based on shipboard ADCP data), and (3)Wind and current data from the Central Weather Bureau (CWB). Results showed that SARMAP would predict satisfactory drift tracks when we have good current data.