Infragravity-wave modulation of short-wave celerity in the surf zone

The cross-shore evolution of individual wave celerity is investigated using two highresolution laboratory experiments on bichromatic waves. Individual waves are tracked during their onshore propagation and their characteristics, including celerity, are estimated. The intrawave variability in celerity is low in the shoaling zone but increases...

Infragravity-wave dynamics in a barred coastal region, a numerical study

This paper presents a comprehensive numerical study into the infragravity-wave dynamics at a field site, characterized by a gently sloping barred beach. The nonhydrostatic wave-flow model SWASH was used to simulate the local wavefield for a range of wave conditions (including mild and storm conditions). The extensive spatial coverage of the...

Nonlinear infragravity–wave interactions on a gently sloping laboratory beach

A high-resolution dataset of three irregular wave conditions collected on a gently sloping laboratory beach is analyzed to study nonlinear energy transfers involving infragravity frequencies. This study uses bispectral analysis to identify the dominant, nonlinear interactions and estimate energy transfers to investigate energy flows within the...

Morphological Development of a Mega-Nourishment: First Observations at the Sand Engine

Large (mega-scale) nourishments have been proposed as a promising alternative for traditional beach and shoreface nourishments, especially for locations with large structural erosion and sufficient sediment to dredge. This paper examines the initial bathymetric evolution of the Sand Engine, a mega-nourishment of 17 million m3 protruding almost 1...

Input reduction for long-term morphodynamic simulations

Input reduction is imperative to long-term (> years) morphodynamic simulations to avoid excessive computation times. Here, we discuss the input-reduction framework for wave-dominated coastal settings introduced by Walstra et al. (2013). The framework comprised 4 steps, viz. (1) the selection of the duration of the original (full) time series of...

Modelling aeolian sediment accumulations on a beach

This paper aims to conceptually simulate observed spatial and temporal variability in aeolian sediment transport rates, erosion and deposition on a beach. Traditional strategies of modeling aeolian sediment transport rates do not account for supply limitations that are common on natural beaches. A recently developed 1D linear advection model is...

Individual wave height distributions in the coastal zone: Measurements and simulations and the effect of directional spreading

Characteristics of the individual wave height distribution in shallow water have been investigated using measured wave data and results of numerical simulations using the non-hydrostatic SWASH model. It is shown that the SWASH model is capable of reproducing the temporal and spatial variation of surface elevation in a wave flume and the...

The ECORS-Truc Vert’08 nearshore field experiment: Presentation of a three-dimensional morphologic system in a macro-tidal environment during consecutive extreme storm conditions

A large multi-institutional nearshore field experiment was conducted at Truc Vert, on the Atlantic coast of France in early 2008. Truc Vert’08 was designed to measure beach change on a long, sandy stretch of coast without engineering works with emphasis on large winter waves (offshore significant wave height up to 8 m), a three-dimensional...

Wave boundary layer hydrodynamics during onshore bar migration

To study onshore bar migration and the accompanying intra-wave sediment transport a wave flume experiment was conducted. The wave flume had a rigid bottom with a single bar profile. The focus of the experiment was to measure the hydrodynamics in the wave bottom boundary layer. The results show that the skewness of bottom stress is not only...

Modeling cross-shore sandbar behavior on the timescale of weeks

We compare predictions of a coupled, wave-averaged, cross-shore waves-currents-bathymetric evolution model to observations of onshore and offshore nearshore sandbar migration. The observations span a 10- and 44-day period with onshore/offshore bar migration at Duck, North Carolina, and at Hasaki, Kashima Coast, Japan, respectively, a 3.5-month...

Nearshore subtidal bathymetry from time-exposure video images

Time-averaged (over many wave periods) nearshore video observations show the process of wave breaking as one or more white alongshore bands of high intensity. Across a known depth profile, similar bands of dissipation can be predicted with a model describing the time-averaged cross-shore evolution of organized wave and roller energy. This close...