Wave attenuation on an offshore coral reef

Abstract

The wave climate along the northeastern tropical coastline of Australia is controlled by The Great Barrier Reef (GBR). However, the processes by which the GBR attenuates and transforms waves are little understood. As the first part of an on-going study of the interaction between waves and coral reefs, a field experiment was conducted to study the processes that occur as waves break on an offshore reef and proceed across the reef flat into the lagoon. Eighteen wave, water level, and current measuring instruments were deployed and data for a wide range of tide and wave conditions were collected. Preliminary results for wave attenuation are presented. Results for wave attenuation across the ree..