Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-k7p5g Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-11T00:27:22.872Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The lateral wave at a depth discontinuity in the ocean and its relevance to tsunami propagation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 April 2006

D. R. King
Affiliation:
Department of Oceanography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
P. H. LeBlond
Affiliation:
Department of Oceanography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Abstract

The theory of lateral waves is reviewed in the context of long surface gravity waves and is used to interpret the results of experiments performed in a wave tank to simulate tsunami propagation following a disturbance on a continental shelf. It is suggested that since the lateral wave precedes the direct wave at coastal stations its detection might prove useful in tsunami warning systems.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 1982 Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abbamowitz, M. & Stegun, I. A. 1965 Handbook of Mathematical Functions. Dover.
Brekhovskikh, L. M. 1960 Waves in Layered Media. Academic.
Cagniard, L. 1939 Reflection and Refraction of Progressive Seismic Waves. McGraw-Hill.
Hammack, J. L. & Segur, H. 1978 Modelling criteria for long water waves. J. Fluid Mech. 84, 359373.Google Scholar
Heelan, P. A. 1953 On the theory of head waves. Geophysics 18, 871893.Google Scholar
King, D. R. 1978 The wave field on a shelf resulting from point source generation. with application to tsunamis. Ph.D. thesis, University of British Columbia.
Murty, T. S. 1977 Seismic Sea Waves-Tsunamis. Dept. of Fisheries and the Environment, Fisheries and Marine Sciences, Ottawa.
Pite, H. D. 1973 Studies in frictionally damped waves. Ph.D. thesis, University of New South Wales.
Spaeth, M. G. & Berkman, S. C. 1967 The tsunami of March 28, 1964, as recorded at tide stations. U.S. Coast Geodetic Survey Tech. Bull. no. 23.Google Scholar
Whitham, G. B. 1974 Linear and Non-Linear Waves. Wiley.