TY - JOUR
T1 - Observations and modeling of tsunami-induced currents in ports and harbors
AU - Lynett, Patrick J.
AU - Borrero, Jose C.
AU - Weiss, Robert
AU - Son, Sangyoung
AU - Greer, Dougal
AU - Renteria, Willington
N1 - Funding Information:
The work presented here was partially supported by grants from Lighthouse R&D Enterprises Inc. and the National Science Foundation . The Port of Tauranga and Professor Willem deLange of the University of Waikato graciously provided the data used in Fig. 2 .
Copyright:
Copyright 2012 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2012/4/15
Y1 - 2012/4/15
N2 - Tsunamis, or "harbor waves" in Japanese, are so-named due to common observations of enhanced wave heights, currents and damage in harbors and ports. However, dynamic currents induced by these waves, while regularly observed and known to cause significant damage, are poorly understood. Observations and modeling of the currents induced by the 2011 Tohoku and 2004 Indian Ocean tsunamis allows us to show that the strongest flows in harbor basins are governed by horizontally sheared and rotational shallow features, such as jets and large eddies. When examining currents in harbors, this conclusion will generally require a simulation approach that both includes the relevant physical processes in the governing equations and uses a numerical scheme that does not artificially damp these features. Without proper representation of the physics associated with these phenomena, predictive models may provide drag force estimates that are an order of magnitude or more in error. The immediate implementation of this type of analysis into tsunami hazard studies can mean the difference between an unaffected port and one in which 300. m long container vessels are detached from their moorings and drift chaotically.
AB - Tsunamis, or "harbor waves" in Japanese, are so-named due to common observations of enhanced wave heights, currents and damage in harbors and ports. However, dynamic currents induced by these waves, while regularly observed and known to cause significant damage, are poorly understood. Observations and modeling of the currents induced by the 2011 Tohoku and 2004 Indian Ocean tsunamis allows us to show that the strongest flows in harbor basins are governed by horizontally sheared and rotational shallow features, such as jets and large eddies. When examining currents in harbors, this conclusion will generally require a simulation approach that both includes the relevant physical processes in the governing equations and uses a numerical scheme that does not artificially damp these features. Without proper representation of the physics associated with these phenomena, predictive models may provide drag force estimates that are an order of magnitude or more in error. The immediate implementation of this type of analysis into tsunami hazard studies can mean the difference between an unaffected port and one in which 300. m long container vessels are detached from their moorings and drift chaotically.
KW - Eddies
KW - Field observation
KW - Numerical simulation
KW - Tsunami
KW - Turbulent structures
KW - Whirlpools
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U2 - 10.1016/j.epsl.2012.02.002
DO - 10.1016/j.epsl.2012.02.002
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84857526712
SN - 0012-821X
VL - 327-328
SP - 68
EP - 74
JO - Earth and Planetary Sciences Letters
JF - Earth and Planetary Sciences Letters
ER -