ABSTRACT
Ocean waves are created at variable frequencies. The lower-frequency waves, called swells, propagate out from the generally distant storm areas with little or no loss of energy, travelling thousands of miles while in deep water. Swell energy is dissipated only when the swell reaches shallow water near a continent’s shoreline or near an island. The US Army Corps of Engineer’s Wave Information Studies (USACE WIS) data from north of Point Conception, California, were used. In the USACE WIS programme, wave energy statistics were hindcasted for very nearshore grid points spaced 5 nautical miles apart. The wave tri-statistics from deep water to the surf zone was contoured showing the wave energy loss as the ocean wave propagates shoreward into shallow water. Southern California has a relatively low energy density near to shore because of the wave-shadowing effects.
