Microscale pressure fluctuations near waves being generated by the wind

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Abstract
Measurements of static pressure and wave height are used to describe the waveinduced pressure field above generating sea waves. A large hump in the pressure spectra is observed at the wave frequencies. The amplitude of this hump increases and the rate of its vertical decay decreases as the mean wind speed increases. The phase difference between the pressure and the waves during active generation is about 135°, pressure lagging the waves, and does not change vertically for measurements at heights greater than the wave crests. In the present data, active wave generation appears to occur only when the wind at a height of 5 metres is greater than or about equal to twice the phase speed of the waves.