Coastal Engineering 36 Z1999. 1736
A locally nonlinear interpretation of PUV
measurements
a,)
b
Rodney J. Sobey
, Steven A. Hughes
a
Department of Ciil and Enironmental Engineering, Uniersity of California, 539 Dais Hall, Berkeley, CA
94720-1710, USA
b
Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory, USAE Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, MS 39180, USA
Received 5 May 1998; revised 19 October 1998; accepted 27 October 1998
Abstract
A time domain method is presented for analyzing simultaneous measurements of pressure and
the horizontal components of velocity obtained beneath irregular multidirectional wave fields. This
new method differs from the usual linear directional analyses applied to PUV data in two
important aspects. First, the essential nonlinearity of the measured waves is not sacrificed to
achieve a solution. Therefore, predictions of sea surface elevation and directional kinematics
throughout the water column accurately portray the actual nonlinear character of the waves.
Second, the analysis method is `local' in that it can be applied to segments of PUV time series
much shorter than an individual wave. The viability of the locally nonlinear methodology
developed in this paper is proven by demonstrating agreement with higher-order theoretical steady
waves. Predictions of sea surface elevation and wave kinematics are also made using actual
measurements from PUV instruments at two ocean sites off the west coast of the United States.
q 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Data processing; Marine environment; Mathematical methods; Measurements; Ocean waves; Time
domain analysis
1. Introduction
The PUV gauge has been a popular field instrument for sensing the directional
characteristics of waves. It groups together a pressure transducer and a directional
)
Corresponding author. Tel.: q1-510-6423162; Fax: q1-510-6438934; E-mail: sobey@ce.berkeley.edu
0378-3839r99r$ - see front matter q 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
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