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Identification of wave systems in the multimodal sea state along the Indian shelf seas

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Abstract

The coexistence of multiple wave systems generated locally and by remote storms is common in the ocean and its quantification is required in the design of marine facilities. This study identifies the multimodal sea states at six locations in the shelf seas of India based on partitioned wave output data from numerical model WAVEWATCH-III for 26 years (1990 to 2015). The different systems are identified by the propagation direction and frequencies with a relatively high probability of occurrence of spectral partitions. Four to seven types of distinct clusters of wave systems are present among the study locations. The occurrence of these systems and co-occurrence of this with other systems are examined. The southernmost location experiences the effect of seven wave systems. At all locations, two wave systems from the south with relatively low partial significant wave height (Hs) are present for more than 71% of the time and co-occurred with other systems during 2–67%. The most energetic systems are observed 23% (system 5 at station 3) to 60% (system 4 at station 4) of the time with maximum mean partial Hs values of 1 to 3 m during summer monsoon months. The southernmost location (3) experienced maximum opposing (18%) and crossing (78%) sea states.

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Acknowledgements

The first author wishes to acknowledge CSIR for the award of Senior Research Fellowship. We acknowledge the Director, CSIR-NIO for the facilities provided to conduct this research. ERA5 wind data used in this study is obtained from the ECMWF data server: http://data.ecmwf.int/data. The authors thank the reviewers for the comments and suggestions, which improved the scientific content of the paper. This work is a part of the Doctoral thesis of the first author registered with Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli and bears NIO contribution 6705.

Funding

This study was financially supported by the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research, New Delhi (CSIR).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ocean Engineering Division, CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography (Council of Scientific & Industrial Research), Dona Paula, Goa, 403004, India

    M. M. Amrutha & V. Sanil Kumar

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  1. M. M. Amrutha
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  2. V. Sanil Kumar
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Correspondence to V. Sanil Kumar.

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Responsible Editor: Amin Chabchoub

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Amrutha, M.M., Kumar, V.S. Identification of wave systems in the multimodal sea state along the Indian shelf seas. Ocean Dynamics 71, 589–600 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10236-021-01456-x

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