What determines the height of a wave?
Wave height is affected by wind speed, wind duration (or how long the wind blows), and fetch, which is the distance over water that the wind blows in a single direction. If wind speed is slow, only small waves result, regardless of wind duration or fetch.
How are waves measured in the ocean?
Scientists use two measures to describe ocean waves: height and length. As is shown on the figure, wave height is defined as the height of the wave from the wave top, called the wave crest to the bottom of the wave, called the wave trough.
What are the 2 types of ocean waves?
Three types of water waves may be distinguished: wind waves and swell, wind surges, and sea waves of seismic origin (tsunamis).
What is the fetch of a wave?
fetch, area of ocean or lake surface over which the wind blows in an essentially constant direction, thus generating waves. The term also is used as a synonym for fetch length, which is the horizontal distance over which wave-generating winds blow.
What is the height of a wave crest called?
amplitude
The distance between successive crests or troughs is called the wavelength. The height of a wave is the amplitude.…
What is defined as the distance between wave crests?
The horizontal distance between two adjacent crests or troughs is known as the wavelength.
How do you find the amplitude of a wave?
Amplitude is generally calculated by looking on a graph of a wave and measuring the height of the wave from the resting position. The amplitude is a measure of the strength or intensity of the wave. For example, when looking at a sound wave, the amplitude will measure the loudness of the sound.
What is a wave GCSE geography?
Waves are essentially the movement of water molecules within the ocean, and are restricted to the surface layers of our oceans and seas. They involve the circular orbit of water molecules and are the agents of coastal change. Waves vary enormously in size and character, from ocean to ocean.
What is hydraulic action in geography?
Hydraulic Action. Hydraulic Action is the sheer force of water crashing against the coastline causing material to be dislodged and carried away by the sea. Compression. Compression occurs in rocky areas when air enters into crack in rock.
What is the amplitude of an earthquake wave independent of?
The amplitude X is completely independent of the speed of propagation vw and depends only on the amount of energy in the wave. Figure 13.9 The destructive effect of an earthquake is a palpable evidence of the energy carried in the earthquake waves.
What is the relationship between amplitude and frequency in waves?
1 Amplitude—distance between the resting position and the maximum displacement of the wave 2 Frequency—number of waves passing by a specific point per second 3 Period—time it takes for one wave cycle to complete
How high are the waves in the ocean?
In the open ocean, with strong winds (92 km/h) that blow for at least 69 hours, the waves will average nearly 15 m high and their wavelengths will be over 200 m.
What is the wave base of the ocean?
The one-half wavelength depth of disturbance of the water beneath a wave is known as the wave base. Since ocean waves rarely have wavelengths greater than 200 m, and the open ocean is several thousand metres deep, the wave base does not normally interact with the bottom of the ocean.