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The Douglas sea scale is a scale which measures the height of the waves and also measures the swell of the sea. The scale is very simple to follow and is expressed in one of 10 degrees. The scale is very simple to follow and is expressed in one of 10 degrees.
Breaking swell waves at Hermosa Beach, California. A swell, also sometimes referred to as ground swell, in the context of an ocean, sea or lake, is a series of mechanical waves that propagate along the interface between water and air under the predominating influence of gravity, and thus are often referred to as surface gravity waves.
Significant wave height H 1/3, or H s or H sig, as determined in the time domain, directly from the time series of the surface elevation, is defined as the average height of that one-third of the N measured waves having the greatest heights: [5] / = = where H m represents the individual wave heights, sorted into descending order of height as m increases from 1 to N.
In oceanography, sea state is the general condition of the free surface on a large body of water—with respect to wind waves and swell—at a certain location and moment. A sea state is characterized by statistics, including the wave height, period, and spectrum. The sea state varies with time, as the wind and swell conditions change.
Depending on context, wave height may be defined in different ways: For a sine wave, the wave height H is twice the amplitude (i.e., the peak-to-peak amplitude): [1] =.; For a periodic wave, it is simply the difference between the maximum and minimum of the surface elevation z = η(x – c p t): [1] = {()} {()}, with c p the phase speed (or propagation speed) of the wave.
After the wave breaks, it becomes a wave of translation and erosion of the ocean bottom intensifies. Cnoidal waves are exact periodic solutions to the Korteweg–de Vries equation in shallow water, that is, when the wavelength of the wave is much greater than the depth of the water.
The front face and crest of the wave remain relatively smooth with little foam or bubbles, resulting in a very narrow surf zone, or no breaking waves at all. The short, sharp burst of wave energy means that the swash/backwash cycle completes before the arrival of the next wave, leading to a low value of Kemp's phase difference (< 0.5).
Swell height is the height of the swell in deep water. [1] Swell direction is the direction from which the swell is coming. It is measured in degrees (as on a compass), and often referred to in general directions, such as a NNW or SW swell. [1] Swell period is an important factor in surf forecasting. It is a measurement of time between ...