GEOL 1033 Lecture 8: GEOL 1033 – 02/28/17 Waves
2 Mar 2017
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Waves tra(cid:374)s(cid:373)it e(cid:374)ergy (cid:894)(cid:374)ot (cid:373)ass(cid:895) across the ocea(cid:374)"s surface. Wave orbits waves travel ahead, while objects do not. The highest point on the wave is called the crest. The lowest point on the wave is called the trough. Wave height is measure from trough to crest. Wavelength is measured from crest to crest or trough to trough. Frequency: number of wave crests passing each crest (call it point a) each second. Period: time required for wave crest at point a to reach point b. Wavelength determines the size of the orbits; water depth determines the shape of the orbits. Wave orbits are largest at the surface, once we reach a depth of wave length, the orbitals diminish altogether. Depth of motion = l/2 where l = wavelength. First three wave types are free waves - if you remove the force the wave would still propagate.
