Steep unidirectional wave groups – fully nonlinear simulations vs. experiments

Abstract. A detailed quantitative comparison of fully nonlinear computations with the measurements of unidirectional wave groups is presented. Computational results on evolving wave groups were compared with previous available experiments. The local surface elevation variation, the evolution of envelope shapes, the velocity of propagation of the steepest crests in the group and their relation to the height of the crests were obtained numerically and experimentally. Conditions corresponding to incipient wave breaking were investigated in greater detail. The results shed additional light on mechanisms leading to the breaking of steep waves, as well as on the crucial importance of exact matching between initial conditions in computations and experiments.