Abstract
Wave breaking transfers momentum between waves to currents. In doing so
it dissipates wave energy and affects long-term dispersion and transport
of tracers, Wave breaking also affects the transfer of wind stresses to
the ocean and is a major player in ocean acoustics, the dynamics of
near-surface gas exchanges and the dynamics of phytoplankton and buoyant
pollutants. Progressive waves were generated numerically using Gerris
[6]. The velocity field was then used to estimate Lagrangian parcel
dynamics in the neighborhood of the breaking event. The trans- port
generated by the breaking events is shown to be significant, when
compared to the wave-generated residual flow, as captured by the Stokes
drift. We formulate a parametrization of the break- ing velocity based
upon an analysis of the Largrangian dynamics of fluid parcels. Further,
we describe how the breaking velocity is incorporated in the vortex
force formulation of wave current interactions [1, 2].