Three - dimensional structure of waves.

Abstract

For engineering applications a dterministic description of waves will often be preferable to.a spectral representation. The present contribution describes the three-dimensional structure of storm waves, utilizing - in a linear deterministic theory - the full information from field data comprising records of the surface elevation and two horizontal velocities at one point, PSUP1. From the amplitude, direction of travel and phase of each frequency in a Fourier decomposition, time series of various quantities can be calculated at any other point, PSUP2. For a distance PSUP1PSUP2 as large as 1.3 L, where L is the mean wave length, a comparison of calculated and measured data shows agreement that is statisfactory for a linear theory. For each frequency band the directional energy distribution has been determined. (from Authors' abstract)