Journal article
Excitation of rogue waves in a variable medium: An experimental study on the interaction of water waves and currents
A Toffoli, T Waseda, H Houtani, T Kinoshita, K Collins, D Proment, M Onorato
Physical Review E Statistical Nonlinear and Soft Matter Physics | AMER PHYSICAL SOC | Published : 2013
Abstract
We show experimentally that a stable wave propagating into a region characterized by an opposite current may become modulationally unstable. Experiments have been performed in two independent wave tank facilities; both of them are equipped with a wavemaker and a pump for generating a current propagating in the opposite direction with respect to the waves. The experimental results support a recent conjecture based on a current-modified nonlinear Schrödinger equation which establishes that rogue waves can be triggered by a nonhomogeneous current characterized by a negative horizontal velocity gradient. © 2013 American Physical Society.
Grants
Awarded by Seventh Framework Programme
Funding Acknowledgements
Experiments were supported by the JSPS Fellowship for Research in Japan Program, Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research of the JSPS, and the International Science Linkages (ISL) Program of the Australian Academy of Science. Financial support of the Australian Research Council and Woodside Energy Ltd. through Grant No. LP0883888 is also acknowledged. M.O. and A.T. acknowledge the VDRS grant from Swinburne University of Technology. M.O. was supported by EU project EXTREME SEAS (SCP8-GA-2009-234175) and ONR Grant No. N000141010991. M.O. acknowledges Dr. B. Giuli Nico for interesting discussions.