Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
https://hdl.handle.net/11681/22206| Title: | Energy spectra in shallow U.S. coastal waters |
| Authors: | Thompson, Edward F. |
| Keywords: | Water waves--Measurement Coastal engineering--United States |
| Publisher: | Coastal Engineering Research Center (U.S.) Engineer Research and Development Center (U.S.) |
| Series/Report no.: | Technical Paper;no. 80-2 |
| Abstract: | Abstract: Digital wave analyses for 3 to 12 months of data from each of 11 U.S. coastal gages are summarized and discussed. Water depths at the gage sites were typically between 5 and 9 meters. The gage designs included step resistance, continuous wire, pressure, and accelerometer buoy. The analysis for each record included computation of the energy (or variance) spectrum and the distribution function of sea-surface elevations. Parameters of the spectrum and distribution fw1ction of sea-surface elevations were also computed. Spectra and parameters for the 24 highest energy cases from each gage location are presented individually. Spectra for all cases are grouped according to significant wave height and peak spectral period. Mean spectra and standard deviations about the mean are presented for most height-period groups. Parameters for all cases are summarized, including number of major spectral peaks, spectral-peakedness parameter, and third and fourth moments of the normalized distribution function of sea-surface elevations. Multi peaked spectra are common at all locations. Mean spectra show evidence of systematic changes in shape as a function of significant height and peak spectral period. Values of the spectral-peakedness parameter range from about one to eight. The distribution functions of sea-surface elevations indicate a tendency for more extreme high values than low and for a more narrow distribution function than the Gaussian distribution. Observed characteristics are related to physical wave behavior and illustrated with three cases from cnoidal wave theory. Evidence is presented that the ratio of significant wave height to water depth does not exceed 0.55 in depths of S to 9 meters. 2 |
| Description: | Technical Paper |
| Rights: | Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/11681/22206 |
| Appears in Collections: | Technical Paper |
Files in This Item:
| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CERC Technical Paper No 80-2.pdf | 6.24 MB | Adobe PDF |  View/Open |