Accession Number:

ADA048723

Title:

The Kinematics of Breaking Waves in the Surf Zone.

Descriptive Note:

Master's thesis,

Corporate Author:

NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY CALIF

Personal Author(s):

• Olsen,Alfred James

Report Date:

1977-09-01

Pagination or Media Count:

76.0

Abstract:

Simultaneous measurements of sea surface elevation and onshore and alongshore water particle velocities were measured at three locations within the surf zone using two capacitance type penetrating wave staffs and three two-component electromagnetic flow meters. The probability density functions, pdf, for the sea surface elevation were always highly positively skewed, whereas the pdfs for the velocities were both negatively and positively skewed. Mean values of the onshore and alongshore components of flow reflected the influence of a rip current frequently observed just south of the instrument locations. Strong harmonics in the spectra of sea surface fluctuations and particle velocities infer nonlinear conditions. Coherence values between waves and onshore flow were high, ranging above 0.9. The coherence between waves and onshore flow was used to separate the turbulence and wave-induced velocity components. Over the range of collapsing to spilling breakers a reasonable value for the ratio of turbulent to wave-induced velocity was determined to be approximately 0.75. Saturation regions were found in the wave and velocity energy-density spectra at higher frequencies as evidenced by -5 and -3 slopes, respectively. Author

Descriptors:

• *KINEMATICS
• *OCEAN WAVES
• VELOCITY
• DENSITY
• OCEAN CURRENTS
• THESES
• POWER SPECTRA
• TOPOGRAPHY
• FLOW RATE
• MATHEMATICAL ANALYSIS
• ELEVATION
• BEACHES
• SHORES
• SURF

Subject Categories:

• Physical and Dynamic Oceanography
• Mechanics

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE