Abstract
This contribution is aimed at advancing our understanding of local microwave reflectivity properties of small-scale breaking water waves, a widespread feature of the wind-driven sea surface. In this contribution a detailed laboratory study of the disturbances generated in the breaking zones of short breaking gravity waves is summarized.* The response of microwaves to these hydrodynamic disturbances was investigated at X-Band, for which large local reflected power coherent with the disturbances was found. The wavenumber structure of the breaking zone disturbances was found to be consistent with Bragg scattering. It is concluded that further investigation is warranted of the contribution to the backscattered cross-section of the small-scale breaking wave components on the sea surface in order to improve understanding of the relationship between radar backscattter and the desired sea surface properties of interest such as the wind-stress vector and ocean wave spectrum.
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References
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© 1985 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
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Banner, M.L., Fooks, E.H. (1985). On the Hydrodynamics of Small-Scale Breaking Waves and Their Microwave Reflectivity Properties. In: Toba, Y., Mitsuyasu, H. (eds) The Ocean Surface. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-7717-5_32
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-7717-5_32
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-8415-6
Online ISBN: 978-94-015-7717-5
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