Abstract
As known fromin situ observations, inhomogeneities of flows and of the atmospheric boundary layer produce variations of the intensity of wind wave breaking. A relevant phenomenological model is suggested here, describingin situ data on the breaking of waves in the presence of internal waves. The response of the wave breaking to the flow's inhomogeneity enhances with the growth of its spatial or temporal scale. For the mesoscale (10–100 km) inhomogeneities, the model is essentially simplified—wave breakings depict the local energy inputs to wind waves. The model allows us to compute currents of various type in the wave breaking intensity field. The results may have practical implications, in terms of remote sensing of the ocean.
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Translated by Vladimir A. Puchkin.
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Dulov, V.A., Kudryavtsev, V.N. Wind wave breaking under the conditions of inhomogeneous currents and of the atmospheric boundary layer. Phys. Oceanogr. 7, 403–417 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02509654
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02509654