Wave Interaction with Rectangular Trench in Density‐Stratified Fluid

Abstract

The propagation of water waves in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of a rectangular submarine trench is studied for a density‐stratified fluid in the trench. The theoretical and experimental investigation has focused on the excitation of internal waves within the trench. The study shows that, when the frequency of the propagating surface waves corresponds to the natural frequency of internal waves in the trench, the amplitude of the interfacial waves becomes large compared to the amplitude of the surface waves. The effects of the internal waves on the surface waves are not measurable; the surface waves are sensitive more to changes in depth than to the effects of density stratification. The results of a linear inviscid theory are compared to experiments and show good agreement with various aspects of the observed trench motion.