I. Meillonmenchaca et J. Alvarezborrego, SPATIAL WAVE BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS IN TODOS-SANTOS BAY, BAJA-CALIFORNIA, BY MEANS OF IMAGES OF THE SEA-SURFACE, Ciencias marinas, 23(1), 1997, pp. 23-41
The relationship between the directional spectrum of sea surface waves
and the optical or digital diffraction pattern is well established. B
arber (1954) proved that the wave direction can be estimated from the
diffraction pattern of a photographic image. This work presents the an
alysis of aerial sea surface images. The diffraction pattern or power
spectrum of each image was obtained to determine the directional spect
rum. The technique applied to the sea surface images obtained 12 May,
1993 showed that the waves presented a predominant direction to 65 deg
rees N and an origin in the 250 degrees SW range. The 200 to 12 m wave
lengths were the most frequently found. The implementation and design
of the photographic system is described in this paper. We discuss its
applicability and limitations, as well as the potential this method ha
s in oceanography.