View source for Wave breaking


{{ Definition| title = Wave breaking
| definition = the overturning of the wave crest over the wave front.}}


When waves approach shallow water, wave propagation becomes non-linear. This contrasts with linear wave propagation, where wave propagation does not depend on wave height, as is almost the case with waves propagating in deep water. In shallow water, wave propagation is influenced by the ratio wave height to water depth; the wave crest and the wave trough propagate at different speeds. The wave is therefore transformed, losing its sinusoidal shape. The wave front becomes steeper as the wave crest propagates faster than the trough, ultimately leading to wave breaking. In some cases the wave crest tilts gently over the wave front (spilling breaker) and in other cases the wave crest crashes spectacularly into the wave trough (plunging breaker). Several Coastal Wiki articles listed below discuss the complex phenomenon of wave transformation and wave breaking in shallow water.     


:[[Breaker index]]
:[[Wave transformation]]
:[[Wave collision on a vertical wall]]
:[[Shallow-water wave theory]]
:[[Shoreface profile]]
:[[Wave set-up]]
:[[Wave run-up]]
:[[Swash]]
:[[Swash zone dynamics]]


{{author
|AuthorID=120
|AuthorFullName=Job Dronkers
|AuthorName=Dronkers J}}


[[Category:Physical coastal and marine processes]]