Energy dissipation across the wave spectrum - Breaking and Dissipation of Ocean Surface Waves - page 257

Figure 7.3 Mean power spectrum of incipient-breaking (solid line) and post-breaking (dashed line)
waves. 95% confidence limits are shown. Figure is reproduced from Young & Babanin ( 2006a )
© American Meteorological Society. Reprinted with permission

Confidence limits are very small, and overall the spectra of broken waves lie below the
95% confidence limits of the spectra of non-breaking waves. The higher-order moments
also exhibit interesting substantial differences:

S k i = 0 . 45 ,

S k p = 0 . 31 ,

A s i =− 0 . 186 ,

(7.15)

A s p =− 0 . 017 ,

= . ,

K i 3 34

K p = 2 . 96 .

Here, K i and K p are, respectively, incipient-breaking and post-breaking kurtosis

m 4
m 0 .

=

K (7.16)