Ocean and Ship Wave Modification by a Surface Wake Flow Pattern
Abstract
Ocean surface waves are altered by interactions with mean and fluctuating surface currents. These waves may be ambient or ship-generated, or may be a combined system produced by both sources of generation. An important wave-current interaction is caused by the interaction of the waves with the surface wake produced by the passage of a surface ship. Remote observations of a ship wake using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) show distinct features such as a dark trailing centerline region and bright-line images aligned at some angle to the ship's path. The dark region of relatively low radar backscatter is usually associated with a 'dead winter' region which is relatively devoid of short wave components, while the bright line feature suggests a region of enhanced radar return within the apparent angular confines of the ship's Kelvin wave pattern. In this report the interactions of ship generated Kelvin waves and ambient waves with the momentum wake of a surface vessel are studied to assess the effectiveness of the momentum wake in the generation of these remotely-observed features. Other factors such as the limiting wave steepness at the onset of wave breaking also are considered. Keywords: Ocean waves, Wake detection, Marine hydrodynamics, Wake, Ship waves.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 1988
- Accession Number
- ADA198788
Entities
People
- G. A. Keramidas
- H. T. Wang
- O. M. Griffin
- T. F. Swean Jr.
Organizations
- United States Naval Research Laboratory