Researcher Creates a Controlled Rogue Wave in Realistic Oceanic Conditions

‘Potentially extremely dangerous realistic rogue waves can now be controlled and generated at will in laboratory environments, in similar conditions as they appear in the ocean. This will help us not only to predict oceanic extreme events, but also in the design of safer ships and offshore rigs. In fact, newly designed vessels and rig model prototypes can be tested to encounter in a small scale, before they are built, realistic extreme ocean waves. Therefore, initial plans may change, if models are not resistant enough to face suddenly occurring freak waves,’ says Professor Amin Chabchoub from Aalto University.

Potentially extremely dangerous realistic rogue waves can now be controlled and generated at will in laboratory environments.

 Photo: Hamburg University of Technology

The birth of rogue waves can be physically explained through the modulation instability of water waves. In mathematical terms, this phenomenon can be described through exact solutions of the nonlinear Schrödinger equation, also referred to as “breathers”.

For a couple of years, the research team around Professor Chabchoub has already been able to create steered rogue waves in laboratory wave flumes. However, this has only succeeded in perfect regular wave conditions. In nature, this is rarely the case.

The article has been published in Physical Review Letters.
 

Citation: Amin Chabchoub: Tracking breather dynamics in irregular sea state conditions. Physical Review Letters 2016. Link to the article