BOTTOM PRESSURE FLUCTUATIONS DUE TO STANDING WAVES IN A DEEP, TWO-LAYER OCEAN
Abstract
The pressure fluctuation in a deep ocean, due to short-period surface waves, is calculated by means of a simple physical model. It is shown, as was pointed out earlier by Longuet-Higgins, that the pressure under a standing wave varies at twice the frequency of the wave and with an amplitude proportional to the square of the wave amplitude, and inversely proportional to the wave length, but that the pressure under a progressive wave is constant. A similar calculation of the pressure fluctuation under a standing internal wave gives similar results, but the amplitude is diminished by the factor change in density/density. Numerical calculations, using typical wave amplitudes, show that pressure fluctuations of about 30 cm. may occasionally be expected under 6- second surface waves, but that internal waves, because of their large wave lengths, will have little effect on the pressure in the deep ocean.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 1951
- Accession Number
- AD0491639
Entities
People
- Henry A. Kierstead
Organizations
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution