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Title

Occurrence of extreme waves in three-dimensional mechanically generated wave fields propagating over an oblique current

Author(s)

Toffoli, A.;  Cavaleri, L.;  Babanin, A. V.;  Benoit, M.;  Bitner-Gregersen, E. M.;  Monbaliu, J.;  Onorato, M.;  Osborne, A. R.;  Stansberg, C. T.

Abstract

Laboratory experiments were performed to study the dynamics of three-dimensional mechanically generated waves propagating over an oblique current in partial opposition. The flow velocity varied along the mean wave direction of propagation with an increasing trend between the wave-maker and the centre of the tank. Tests with regular wave packets traversing the area of positive current gradient showed that the concurrent increase of wave steepness triggered modulational instability on otherwise stable wave trains and hence induced the development of very large amplitude waves. In random directional wave fields, the presence of the oblique current resulted in a weak reinforcement of wave instability with a subsequent increase of the probability of occurrence of extreme events. This seems to partially compensate the suppression of strongly non-Gaussian properties due to directional energy distribution.

Publication type

Journal article

Research centre

Swinburne University of Technology. Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Sciences

Source

Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, Vol. 11, no. 3 (2011), pp. 895-903

Publication year

2011

FOR Code(s)

040503 Physical Oceanography;  091103 Ocean Engineering

Keyword(s)

Extreme waves;  Mechanically generated waves;  Oblique current

Publisher

Copernicus Publications

ISSN

1561-8633

Publisher URL

http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/nhess-11-895-2011

Copyright

Copyright © 2011 The Authors. This work is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/). The published version of the paper is reproduced here in accordance with this policy.

Research Projects

Oceanic conditions within extreme tropical cyclones, Australian Research Council grant number LP0883888

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