1. Enhanced dissipation of kinetic energy beneath surface waves
- Author
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Agrawal, Y.C., Terray, E.A., Donelan, M.A., Hwang, P.A., Williams, A.J., III, Drennan, W.M., Kahma, K.K., and Kitaigorodskii, S.A.
- Subjects
Lake Ontario -- Research ,Water waves -- Research ,Hydrography -- Research ,Environmental issues ,Science and technology ,Zoology and wildlife conservation - Abstract
Turbulence in Lake Ontario associated with strong wave breaking indicated that kinetic energy near the air-water interface dissipated faster than the wall-layer theory had forecast. This theory holds that the turbulence is structured in the surface layer in a manner analogous to wall-bounded shear flows. However, short-term measurements of kinetic energy dissipation may be lower than the actual rates if wave breaking is intermittent. Any new theory of upper mixed layer dynamics will have to explain the complexities of wave breaking.
- Published
- 1992