An alternative metric for assessing nearshore hydrodynamic impact due to Wave Energy Converter (WEC) arrays is presented that is based on the modeled changes in alongshore radiation stress gradients in the lee of the array. The metric is developed using a previously observed relationship between measured radiation stresses and alongshore...
Models for surface gravity wave propagation in the presence of currents often assume the current field to be quasi-stationary, which implies that the absolute wave frequency is time invariant. However, in the presence of unsteady currents or time-varying water depth, linear wave theory predicts a time variation of the absolute...
We review several approaches that have been used to estimate ocean surface gravity wavenumbers from wave-resolving remotely sensed image sequences. Two fundamentally different approaches that utilize these data exist. A power spectral density approach identifies wavenumbers where image intensity variance is maximized. Alternatively, a cross-spectral correlation approach identifies wavenumbers where...
This article was originally published online and in print with an incorrect version of Fig. 1. AIP apologizes for this error. All online versions of the article have been corrected.
A laboratory experiment involving rip currents generated on a barred beach with periodic rip channels indicates that rip currents contain energetic low-frequency oscillations in the presence of steady wave forcing. An analytic model for the time-averaged flow in a rip current is presented and its linear stability characteristics are investigated...
The optical intensity signals from surf zone waves in a laboratory flume are analyzed using several different phase‐averaging techniques, and a methodology is developed for estimating wave roller lengths and local wave dissipation. The intensity signals (i.e., phase‐averaged intensity profiles) of individual breaking waves are compared with the wave profiles...
In this study, we use a time domain numerical model based on the fully nonlinear extended Boussinesq equations [Wei et al., 1995] to investigate surface wave transformation and breaking-induced nearshore circulation. The energy dissipation due to wave breaking is modeled by introducing an eddy viscosity term into the momentum equations,...
This project was carried out collaboratively by Oregon State University (OSU) and the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) and involved baseline observations and
modeling at the proposed wave energy conversion (WEC) array site near Reedsport, OR. In particular, observations and predictions of the wave conditions at the...
This project was carried out collaboratively by Oregon State University (OSU) and the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) and involved baseline observations and
modeling at the proposed wave energy conversion (WEC) array site near Reedsport, OR. In particular, observations and predictions of the wave conditions at the...
The time and space variability of wave transformation through a tidal inlet is investigated with radar remote sensing. The frequency of wave breaking and the net wave breaking dissipation at high spatial resolution is estimated using image sequences acquired with a land-based X-band marine radar. Using the radar intensity data,...
The microwave backscatter properties of surf zone waves are analyzed using field observations.
By utilizing a preexisting, independent, water surface discrimination technique, the microwave returns were
extracted along individual waveforms and the data from shoaling (steepening) waves, surf zone breaking
waves, and remnant foam were separated and quantified. In addition,...
The ocean deployment of arrays of Wave Energy Converters (WEC arrays) appears likely in the near future, and deployment of offshore wind turbines has already started. These technologies tap into a potential renewable energy resource but also involve complex systems with uncertain environmental consequences that will likely scale with the...
Synchronous and colocated optical and microwave
signals from waves in the surf zone are presented and analyzed.
The field data were collected using a high-resolution video system
and a calibrated horizontally polarized marine radar during the
decaying phase of a storm. The resulting changes in the received
signals from varying...
Wave and current measurements are presented from a set of laboratory experiments
performed on a fixed barred beach with periodically spaced rip channels using a range of
incident wave conditions. The data demonstrate that the presence of gaps in otherwise
longshore uniform bars dominates the nearshore circulation system for the...
The focus of the paper is the analysis of the flow in rip current systems generated by
channels in longshore bars on a beach. The horizontal variations of rip current systems are
described through the use of the quasi-three-dimensional nearshore circulation model
SHORECIRC. Model predictions are compared to laboratory measurements...
This project was carried out collaboratively by Oregon State University (OSU) and the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) and involved baseline observations and
modeling at the proposed wave energy conversion (WEC) array site near Reedsport, OR. In particular, observations and predictions of the wave conditions at the...