Abstract
Wind-wave tunnel experiments reveal, by use of techniques of the flow visualization, that wind waves are accompanied by the wind drift surface current with large velocity shear and with horizontal variation of velocity relative to the wave profile. The surface current converges from the crest to a little leeward face of the crest, making a downward flow there, even though the wave is not breaking. Namely, wind waves are accompanied by forced convections relative to the crests of the waves. Since the location of the convergence and the downward flow travels on the water surface as the crest of the wave propagates, the motion as a whole is characterized by turbulent structure as well as by the nature of water-surface waves. In this meaning, the term of real wind waves is proposed in contrast with ordinary water waves. The study of real wind waves will be essential in future development of the study of wind waves.
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Toba, Y., Tokuda, M., Okuda, K. et al. Forced convection accompanying wind waves. Journal of the Oceanographical Society of Japan 31, 192–198 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02150958
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02150958