Small Amplitude Internal Waves on the Thermocline,

Abstract

The propagation of gravity waves through fluids having density gradients has been of interest to oceanographers and meteorologists for some time. These internal waves, however, do not submit easily to mathematical analysis. The equations of motion are nonlinear and, even when linearized by a perturbation analysis, they usually have non-constant coefficients. This unfortunate state of affairs has severely hampered progress in the analysis of this type of wave motion. It is generally agreed that the small perturbation analysis, many times coupled with the so-called Boussinesq approximation, forces the equations to yield the basic properties of these waves. Thus, the speed and shape of progressive waves on 'simple' thermoclines has been obtained. The work reported here was undertaken to extend our knowledge of this phenomenon. (Author)

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 1970
Accession Number
AD0726177

Entities

People

  • John P. Dugan

Organizations

  • Johns Hopkins University

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Amplitude
  • Coefficients
  • Equations
  • Equations Of Motion
  • Gravity
  • Gravity Waves
  • Internal Waves
  • Mathematical Analysis
  • Mathematics
  • Perturbations
  • Thermoclines
  • Waves

Fields of Study

  • Mathematics

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science / Meteorology, specifically Wind Wave Turbulence.
  • Control Systems Engineering.
  • Theoretical Analysis.