SPECTRA OF OCEAN WAVES AND MICROSEISMS AS RELATED TO STORMS AT SEA
Abstract
Bottom-mounted, pressure-sensitive, ocean wave gages were first installed on the coast of Barbados, West Indies, in 1954. This and subsequent installations were in intermittent operation through 1960. Pressure and microseismic data were obtained in digital form from these installations and subjected to a power spectrum analysis by the Tukey method. Comparisons of sequences of simultaneous ocean-wave spectra and microseism spectra show a 2-to-1 relation in the period of the waves, which is consistent with the Longuet-Higgins theory of microseism generations. Twenty-minute recordings of wave data were made at intervals of six hours. From these recordings power spectra were computed for correlation with North Atlantic winter storms and with hurricanes. Using an array of three wave gages, cross-correlation methods were used to obtain the direction of propagation of the waves across the array. Directions thus obtained during the passage of one hurricane, taking into account the travel time to storm fetch areas, indicate the fetch area to be in the leading edge of the hurricane circulations. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 23, 1962
- Accession Number
- AD0282952
Entities
People
- J.e. Dinger
Organizations
- United States Naval Research Laboratory