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Previous field observations indicate that the directional spread of swell-frequency (nominally 0.1 Hz) surface gravity waves increases during shoreward propagation across the surf zone. This directional broadening contrasts with the narrowing observed seaward of the surf zone and predicted by Snell’s law for bathymetric refraction. Field-observed broadening was predicted by a new model for refraction of swell by lower-frequency (nominally 0.01 Hz) current and elevation fluctuations. The observations and the model suggest that refraction by the cross-shore currents of energetic shear waves contributed substantially to the observed broadening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nonlinear dispersion of random, directionally spread surface gravity waves in shallow water is examined with Boussinesq theory and field observations. A theoretical dispersion relationship giving a directionally averaged wavenumber magnitude as a function of frequency, the local water depth, and the local wave spectrum and bispectrum is derived for waves propagating over a gently sloping beach with straight and parallel depth contours. The linear, nondispersive shallow water relation is recovered as the first-order solution, with weak frequency and amplitude dispersion appearing as second-order corrections. Wavenumbers were estimated using four arrays of pressure sensors deployed in 2-6-m depth on a gently sloping sandy beach. When wave energy is low, the observed wavenumbers agree with the linear, finitedepth dispersion relation over a wide frequency range. In high energy conditions, the observed wavenumbers deviate from the linear dispersion relation by as much as 20%-30% in the frequency range from two to three times the frequency of the primary spectral peak, but agree well with the nonlinear Boussinesq dispersion relation, confirming that the deviations from linear theory are finite amplitude effects. In high energy conditions, the predicted frequency and amplitude dispersion tend to cancel, yielding a nearly nondispersive wave field in which waves of all frequencies travel with approximately the linear shallow water wave speed, consistent with the observations. The nonlinear Boussinesq theory wavenumber predictions (based on the assumption of irrotational wave motion) are accurate even within the surf zone, suggesting that wave breaking on gently sloping beaches has little effect on the dispersion relation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compares the existing methods for estimating the magnitude of shear wave velocity fluctuations in the presence of gravity waves. Application of iterative maximum likelihood estimator (IMLE); Information on IMLE and direct estimator estimates of shear wave variance for 3-h data segment; Indication of simulations with known mixes of shear and gravity waves.