WAVES

Wavesdisturbances

of the water surfacecan be seen at any beach. And seafarers

have observed waves for thousands of years. Yet despite an abundance of observations,
an understanding of sea waves has come slowly. The ancients knew that waves were
somehow generated by wind, but not until the nineteenth century were the first
mathematical descriptions of waves developed. In this chapter we study the features of
waves, how they are formed, and some of the ways that they affect the ocean. Waves are
important to us in many ways. They make and remake beaches each year and in the
process entertain millions of surfers and swimmers. Waves from a single storm can kill
hundreds of people and can result in millions of rupees in damage to low-lying coastal
regions through flooding and beach erosion. And waves must be considered in the design
and construction of docks, breakwaters, and jetties along the coast because all too often
they are responsible for the failure or even destruction of these structures. Nor can waves
be neglected when designing or operating the largest ships. The ocean surface displays a
complex and continually changing patterna pattern that never exactly repeats itself no
matter how long we watch. Ocean waves come in many sizes and shapes, ranging from
tiny ripples formed by a light breeze, through enormous storm waves, tens of meters
high, to the tides (which are also waves). Because of their complexity, ocean waves
usually do not lend themselves to accurate description or complete explanation in simple
terms. Nevertheless, we commonly work with simplified explanations and descriptions
that help us understand wave phenomena; moreover, most advances in the study of waves
have come through the use of appropriate simplifications. Initially our discussions
involve such simplified or ideal waves.
IDEAL PROGRESSIVE WAVES: To start, let us consider simple progressive waves
and their parts as they pass a fixed pointsay, a pillar. We can make such waves in a
laboratory wave tank or by steadily bobbing the end of a pencil in a basin of water or a
still pond surface. Then we see a series of waves, each wave consisting of a crestthe
highest point of the waveand a troughthe lowest part of the wave. The vertical
distance between any crest and the succeeding trough is the wave height H and the
horizontal distance between successive crests or successive troughs is the wave- length
L; these wave constituents are illustrated in Fig. The time (usually measured in seconds)
that it takes for successive crests or troughs to pass our fixed point is the wave period T,
which is rather easily measured with a stopwatch. We can express the same information
by counting the number of waves that pass our fixed point in a given length of time.
Doing so gives the frequency (L/T), which is expressed in hertz, or cycles per second. For
individual progressive waves, the speed C, (in meters per second) can be calculated from
the simple relationship
C= L / T ,
where L = the wavelength in meters, T = the wave period in seconds.
WAVE LENGTH L

CREST

HEIGHT H
TROUGH

120o

120o
CONDITION FOR BREAKING

Where the wave height is low, crests and troughs tend to be rounded and may be
approximated mathematically by a sine wave (a mathematical expression for a smooth,
regular oscillation). As wave height increases, sea waves normally have crests more
sharply pointed than simple sine waves and can be approximated by more complicated
mathematical curves, such as the sharp-pointed, rounded-trough mathematical
curves known as trochoids (see Fig).
Wave steepness (H / L), the ratio of wave height to wavelength, is a measure of wave
stability. It is also the factor that determines whether a small boat glides smoothly over
low waves or pitches through steep, choppy waves. When wave steepness exceeds 1/7,
waves become unstable and begin to break (see Fig.) by raveling of the oversteepened
crests, forming spilling breakers. The angle at the crest must be 120o or greater for the
wave to remain stable; otherwise the crest would break and form surf.
Wave Motion: (in deep water and shallow water)
So far we have considered only movements of the water surfacethe crests and troughs
moving together that make up a wave train. But what happens to the water itself as
waves pass? How is the motion of the water related to the motion of the wave-form?
These questions have been studied by using wave tanks with bits of material floating on
the surface or dyed bits of water or oil droplets below the surface. The floating object is
observed to move in perfect circles when waves oscillate harmoniously sinus-like. If that
object hovered in the water, like a water particle, it would be moving along diminishing
circles, when placed deeper in the water. At a certain depth, the object would stand still.
This is the wave's base, precisely half the wave's length. In deeper waters the wave action
decreases rapidly with depth. Whereas in shallow waters wave action does not decrease
with depth but the wave effect reaches the sea bed. That is why along the beaches mud is
churned out due to wave action.

The water moves forward as the crest passes, then vertically, and finally backward as the
trough passes. Each water particle makes small oscillations around its spot.
When waves move through deep water, individual bits of water move in circular orbits
that are vertical and nearly closed. In shallow waters, orbits of water particles will be

elliptical parallel to seabed. Near the bottom water movement will be back and forth,
vertical movement is prevented by proximity of bottom.
Similar movement is seen, if you observe a buoy tied in water, the buoy does not move
along with the waves, it simply oscillates up, down, back and fore.
Waves grow as all water particles move at the same time and in same directions that add
up and make wave's shape and direction. Note that the water particles do not travel but
only their collective energy does! Waves that travel far and fast, undulate slowly,
requiring the water particles to make slow oscillations, which reduces friction and loss of
energy.
Wave development:
Waves are disturbances of the ocean surface that pass rapidly across the water but with
little accompanying water movement. Stated another way, waves are manifestations of
energy moving across the ocean surface. Now we shall see how the energy of the wind is
supplied to the ocean surface and how wind waves are formed. Wave formation by the
wind is easily observed. Even a gentle breeze results in the immediate formation of
ripples, which form more or less regular arcs of long radius, often on top of earlierformed waves. Ripples play an important role in wind-wave formation by providing the
surface roughness necessary for the wind to push the water: in short, they provide the
grip for the wind. Ripples are short lived. If the wind dies, they disappear almost
immediately; but if the wind continues to blow, ripples grow and are gradually
transformed into larger waves, usually short and choppy ones. These latter waves
continue to grow as long as they continue to receive more energy from wind. Choppy,
newly formed seas provide a much better grip for the wind than smooth-crested swells.
The size of the waves formed depends on the amount of energy supplied by the wind. The
relevant factors operating here are the wind speed, the length of time that the wind blows
in a constant direction, and the fetchthe maximum distance that the wind flows in a
constant direction. As the winds continue to blow, waves grow in size, as illustrated in
fig, until they reach a maximum sizedefined as the point at which the energy supplied
by the wind is equaled by the energy lost by breaking waves, called whitecaps or white
horses. When this condition is reached, we refer to it as a fully developed sea. The largest
wind waves are formed by storms. (discussed in storm surges).

(Slight sea)
Usually waves are present on the ocean at the time new waves begin to form. Either the
older waves will be destroyed by the wind or newly formed waves will be generated on
top of the old ones. There is continuous interaction between waves. Wave crests coincide,

forming momentarily new and higher waves. Seconds later the wave crests may no longer
coincide but instead cancel each other; then the wave crests disappear.
Wave Energy:
Energy is gained through the pushing-and-dragging effect of the wind. The amount of
energy gained by the waves depends on such factors as sea roughness, the specific
waveform, and the relative speed of the wind and waves. This energy is in two forms.
One-half is potential energy, depending on the position of the water above or below the
still-water waves level; the potential energy advances with the group speed of the
individual waves. The rest of the wave energy known as kinetic energyis possessed by
the moving water as the wave passes. There is a continuous transformation of potential
energy to kinetic energy and vice versa. The total energy in a wave is proportional to the
square of the wave height; in other words, doubling the wave height increases its energy
by a factor of 4. An enormous amount of energy is contained in each wave. A swell with a
wave height of 2 meters, for example, has energy equivalent to 1200 calories per square
meter of ocean surface; a 4-meter swell has 4800 calories per square meter. Nearly all the
wave energy is dissipated as heat when the wave strikes a coastline. Sensitive
seismographs record the pounding of surf on beaches many hundreds of kilometers away
as faint earth tremors. The energy in ocean waves may some day be harnessed on a large
scale for human purposes.
Dampening of Waves:
Once a wave has formed, restoring forces act on it to damp out the wave and to restore
the initial or equilibrium state. Depending on the size of the wave, different forces may be
involved. For the smallest waves (wavelength less than 1.7 centimeters, period less than
0.1 second), the dominant restoring force is surface tension, in which the water surface
tends to smooth out the waves. For waves with periods between 1 second and about 5
minutes, gravity is the dominant restoring force; this range includes most of the waves we
see.
Types of Waves:
If a pebble is thrown into still water, we observe a group of waves changing
continuously, as they move away from the disturbance. These waves are free to move
away from the disturbance. These are called free waves. Similarly waves caused by
disturbances like underwater explosion, earthquake, volcanic activity or landslides are
also free waves. On the other hand waves caused by tidal forces are not free to move as
the disturbing force ie gravitational pull, is continuously applied. These waves are called
forced waves. Wind waves come under the category of both forced and free waves.
There are also other kinds of waves named after transformation due to dampening
factors. As described in previous paragraph, the wave smoothened due to surface tension
is called a capillary wave. Wave that is dampened by gravity is called a gravity wave.
LARGE WAVES:
Large waves are caused by some disturbance in large scale. Waves caused by
disturbances like gravitational pull, underwater explosion, earthquake, volcanic activity

or landslides are very large in size. Tides (caused by gravitational pull of moon and sun)
are large waves sprawling across a large geographical area. These waves are regular in
frequency and can be predicted about their time and height. The other large waves are:
Storm Surges and Tidal waves:
Very strong winds of the eye of and the near outer area of storm (TRS) or hurricane
causes the water levels to raise. Since a storm moves slowly, the winds act for longer time
on the sea surface, the water levels increase well above the normal sea level. As the storm
is about to pass, there will be a gradual raise in the water levels few hours before passing
of the center. When storm center passes it causes a sharp raise in water levels called
storm surge. The surge usually lasts about 2 to 5 hours when sea levels raise about 3 to 5
metres. Combined with wind speed these surges cause lot of damage and destruction. If
these storm surges occur at the time of usual high water of the area then it is called tidal
wave and a greater havoc is created by it due to increase in wave height.
Tsunamis:
Tsunami is a very large ocean wave triggered by underwater earthquake, volcanic
activities or landslides, and are therefore impossible to predict. These are also called
seismic waves. These waves have unusually long-wavelength in excess of 100 kms,
generated in the open ocean and transformed into a train of catastrophic oscillations on
the sea surface close to coastal zones. These normally occur in Pacific Ocean.
In the open ocean, the tsunamis are harmless because of their small height
(typically 30-60 cms.). However, as they race onto shallow water regions and pass into
continental shelves their speed diminishes which results in increase in the wave height in
order to conserve the total energy. Typical speeds in the open ocean are of the order of
600 to 800 km/hr. The tsunami's energy flux, which is dependent on both its wave speed
and wave height, remains nearly constant. When it finally reaches the coast, a tsunami
may appear as a series of breaking waves. The sea begins to heave and churn, sometimes
receding to bare its floor, or suddenly rising far beyond the normal range of wave and
tide. Flooding over breakwaters, tearing ships from their moorings, they leave wide
spread destruction to shoreline habitations and facilities.
Many of a tsunami's properties can be understood with our knowledge of waves.

The amplitude of a tsunami depends on the size of the original disturbance and
distance travelled. A tsunami wave behaves much the same as the widening circle
radiating out from a pebble's plunge. As the circle widens, the wave's crest lengthens
and its height decreases proportionally to the square root of distance travelled. At sea
a tsunami is hardly noticeable even though it travels so fast, typically rising less than
a metre over a period of 10-30 seconds. Such movement is easily concealed by local
waves.
The speed of a tsunami wave is limited by the depth of the sea, to about 450 knots
(830 km/hr) in the Pacific Ocean.
A tsunami of 4000m deep, bounces off the continental shelf, producing a variety
of wave forms. The continental shelf of 100m is a very shallow area for these waves
and they rise, form steep crests and very large horizontal water movements, which
over-run low lying areas, rip boats from their moorings and may bare the sea to a

depth of 5m or splash against the coast to a height of 20-30m. The first tsunami wave
is not necessarily the worst.
Standing waves
Seiches: Oscillations of lake water levels were first studied in Lake Geneva in
Switzerland, where they are called seiches. Seiches are standing waves that slosh to and
fro in deep lakes, from one end to another. Changes in barometric pressure or other
disturbances may start such standing waves. The speed and length of standing waves is
given by the basin's depth and the distance between shores. In this manner each enclosed
body of water has its own standing wave characteristics. At the entrances to semienclosed harbours, waves or an incoming tide may start oscillations that bounce to and
fro between the shores of the harbour. Such oscillations can be started by large wave
trains, gusty winds and may damage moored ships.
Other type of waves:
Bores: When a spring tide comes in on a gently sloping shore which narrows into a river
entrance, the tide currents can become strong enough to displace out flowing water and to
rise up, forming a fast moving vertical wall of water. Such a wave, characterised by a
surge of water moving swiftly upstream, headed by a wave or series of waves, is called a
bore. These waves break the moorings of the vessels tied up in the river.
A famous bore, known as the Mascaret on the French river Seine, forms on spring tides
and reaches some 50km inland. The bore is swift. (Has speed about 35km/hr). Other
famous bores are found in the Hooghly river, Fu-chun River in china, the Amazon River
in Brasil, the Severn in England and the Petitcodiac River in New Brunswick, USA.