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Lecture 16
Waves in the Ocean
Wind-wave alterations on their approach to coasts
Waves experience modifications as they approach the coast. These modifications consist of
refraction, breaking, reflection, and diffraction,. The first two types of modifications are
mainly due to bathymetric changes. Diffraction and reflection arise from an obstacle that hinders
the energy propagation associated with the wave.
Refraction
As waves move into shallow water their phase speed C decreases because C is proportional to
the square root of the depth h. Remember that the period T remains unchanged. The decrease
in C causes then a corre...