Influence of Mean Wind Direction on Sea Surface Wave Development
Open Access
- 1 September 1978
- journal article
- Published by American Meteorological Society in Journal of Physical Oceanography
- Vol. 8 (5) , 926-929
- https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0485(1978)008<0926:iomwdo>2.0.co;2
Abstract
Momentum flux measurements made from an instrumented ocean buoy indicate that the surface drag coefficient CD is strongly dependent on changes in mean wind direction. A change in mean wind direction is accompanied by a change in wave propagation direction and associated variations in wave steepness and stage of wave development. From simultaneous wind-stress and wave measurements a critical value for the relative motion of air and surface waves is suggested beyond which the dominant waves reach the fully developed stage and the drag decreases.Keywords
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