Crowdfunding wave buoys

It's an interesting concept but ultimately there are probably much better ways for us to spend a hundred grand or more (yeah, buoys are not cheap!).

Also, the legal hurdles in getting a buoy deployed (well offshore) are considerable, as is the ongoing maintenance. However distance is no major problem; NOAA operates a large number of buoys that are many hundred kilometers from land (they communicate via satellite).

That being said, a buoy positioned off Norfolk Island would be good for South Pacific cyclone/trade swells, and would also be a useful tool for incoming SW groundswells at Fiji/Samoa etc.

Unfortunately though, the main beneficiaries of such a buoy are surfers ,which makes the economic case harder to justify (most Australian buoy installations are related to ports authorities, or are for climate data collection re: coastal processes and monitoring).