Refined Source Terms in WAVEWATCH III with Wave Breaking and Sea Spray Forecasts

AbstractSea spray aerosols represent a large fraction of the aerosols present in the maritime environment. Despite evidence of the importance of surface wave– and wave breaking–related processes in coupling the ocean with the atmosphere, sea spray source generation functions are traditionally parameterized by the 10-m wind speed U10 alone. It is clear that unless the wind and wave field are fully developed, the source function will be a function of both wind and wave parameters. This study reports primarily on the aerosol component of an air–sea interaction experiment, the phased-resolved High-Resolution Air–Sea Interaction Experiment (HIRES), conducted off the coast of northern California in June 2010. Detailed measurements of aerosol number concentration in the marine atmospheric boundary layer (MABL) at altitudes ranging from as low as 30 m up to 800 m above mean sea level (MSL) over a broad range of environmental conditions (significant wave height Hs of 2 to 4.5 m and U10 from 10 to 18 m s−1) collected from an instrumented research aircraft are presented. Aerosol number densities and volume are computed over a range of particle diameters from 0.1 to 200 μm, while the sea surface conditions, including Hs, moments of the breaker length distribution Λ(c), and wave breaking dissipation, were measured by a suite of electro-optical sensors that included the NASA Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM). The sea-state dependence of the aerosol concentration in the MABL is evident, stressing the need to incorporate wave parameters in the spray source generation functions that are traditionally parameterized by surface winds alone.

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Observation-Based Source Terms in the Third-Generation Wave Model WAVEWATCH III: Updates and Verification

Journal of Physical Oceanography ◽

10.1175/jpo-d-18-0137.1 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 49 (2) ◽

pp. 489-517 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Qingxiang Liu ◽

W. Erick Rogers ◽

Alexander V. Babanin ◽

Ian R. Young ◽

Leonel Romero ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Power Law ◽

Wave Spectrum ◽

Wave Model ◽

Wave Period ◽

Bulk Wave ◽

Third Generation ◽

Source Terms ◽

Frequency Wave ◽

Wavewatch Iii ◽

The Third

AbstractThe observation-based source terms available in the third-generation wave model WAVEWATCH III (i.e., the ST6 package for parameterizations of wind input, wave breaking, and swell dissipation terms) are recalibrated and verified against a series of academic and realistic simulations, including the fetch/duration-limited test, a Lake Michigan hindcast, and a 1-yr global hindcast. The updated ST6 not only performs well in predicting commonly used bulk wave parameters (e.g., significant wave height and wave period) but also yields a clearly improved estimation of high-frequency energy level (in terms of saturation spectrum and mean square slope). In the duration-limited test, we investigate the modeled wave spectrum in a detailed way by introducing spectral metrics for the tail and the peak of the omnidirectional wave spectrum and for the directionality of the two-dimensional frequency–direction spectrum. The omnidirectional frequency spectrum E(f) from the recalibrated ST6 shows a clear transition behavior from a power law of approximately f−4 to a power law of about f−5, comparable to previous field studies. Different solvers for nonlinear wave interactions are applied with ST6, including the Discrete Interaction Approximation (DIA), the more expensive Generalized Multiple DIA (GMD), and the very expensive exact solutions [using the Webb–Resio–Tracy method (WRT)]. The GMD-simulated E(f) is in excellent agreement with that from WRT. Nonetheless, we find the peak of E(f) modeled by the GMD and WRT appears too narrow. It is also shown that in the 1-yr global hindcast, the DIA-based model overestimates the low-frequency wave energy (wave period T > 16 s) by 90%. Such model errors are reduced significantly by the GMD to ~20%.

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Imbalance of energy and momentum source terms of the sea wave transfer equation for fully developed seas

Ocean Science Discussions ◽

10.5194/osd-9-2581-2012 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 9 (4) ◽

pp. 2581-2619

Author(s):

G. V. Caudal

Keyword(s):

Cost Function ◽

Wave Breaking ◽

Transfer Equation ◽

Modulational Instability ◽

Momentum Balance ◽

Spectral Energy ◽

Source Terms ◽

Spectral Flux ◽

Energy And Momentum ◽

Sea Wave

Abstract. Using a two-dimensional empirical sea wave spectral model at full development, this paper performs an assessment of the compatibility of the energy and momentum budgets of sea waves over the whole spectral range. Among the various combinations of model functions for wave breaking and wind source terms tested, no one fulfilled simultaneously the energy and momentum balance of the transfer equation. Based on experimental and theoretical grounds, wave breaking is known to contribute to frequency downshift of a narrow-banded wave spectrum, when the modulational instability is combined with wave breaking. On those grounds, it is assumed that, in addition to dissipation, wave breaking produces a spectral energy flux directed toward low wavenumbers. I show that it is then possible to remove the energy and momentum budget inconsistency, and correlatively the required strength of this spectral flux is estimated. Assuming such a downward spectral flux permits to fulfill both energy and momentum balance conditions, while slightly reducing the consistency between source terms and empirical spectra, as estimated by a cost function K. Other tests were performed in which it was further assumed that wave breaking would also be associated with azimuthal diffusion of the spectral energy. This could allow a slight improvement of the cost function K, and might correlatively reduce the required downward spectral flux by a factor of 4, although it would not be able to remove it entirely.

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Imbalance of energy and momentum source terms of the sea wave transfer equation for fully developed seas

Ocean Science ◽

10.5194/os-8-1085-2012 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 8 (6) ◽

pp. 1085-1098

Author(s):

G. V. Caudal

Keyword(s):

Wave Breaking ◽

Transfer Equation ◽

Wave Spectrum ◽

Momentum Balance ◽

Spectral Energy ◽

Source Terms ◽

Spectral Flux ◽

Energy And Momentum ◽

Wind Source ◽

Sea Wave

Abstract. In the concept of full development, the sea wave spectrum is regarded as a nearly stationary solution of the wave transfer equation, where source and sink terms should be in balance with respect to both energy and momentum. Using a two-dimensional empirical sea wave spectral model at full development, this paper performs an assessment of the compatibility of the energy and momentum budgets of sea waves over the whole spectral range. Among the various combinations of model functions for wave breaking and wind source terms tested, not one is found to fulfill simultaneously the energy and momentum balance of the transfer equation. Based on experimental and theoretical grounds, wave breaking is known to contribute to frequency downshift of a narrow-banded wave spectrum when the modulational instability is combined with wave breaking. On those grounds, it is assumed that, in addition to dissipation, wave breaking produces a spectral energy flux directed toward low wavenumbers. I show that it is then possible to remove the energy and momentum budget inconsistency, and correspondingly the required strength of this spectral flux is estimated. Introducing such a downward spectral flux permits fulfilling both energy and momentum balance conditions. Meanwhile, the consistency between the transfer equation and empirical spectra, estimated by means of a cost function K, is either improved or slightly reduced, depending upon the wave breaking and wind source terms chosen. Other tests are performed in which it is further assumed that wave breaking would also be associated with azimuthal diffusion of the spectral energy. This would correspondingly reduce the required downward spectral flux by a factor of up to 5, although it would not be able to remove it entirely.

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