Wave power
Question: What mechanism transforms gusting wind energy into the regular wave
train of ocean swells, and what determines their amplitude and frequency?
Answer: When the wind blows over a flat sea surface, small ripples form.
These probably correspond to individual strong gusts, are disorganised and have
no fixed direction or frequency.
However, as the wind continues to blow, two things happen. First, the waves
interact with each other to produce longer waves which means lower frequency.
Secondly, the wind pushes these larger waves and puts even more energy into
them. As long as the storm lasts, the wind…
