Tsunami amplitude change question

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    Amplitude Change
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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around the behavior of tsunami waves as they transition from deeper to shallower water, specifically focusing on changes in amplitude and the underlying physics. Participants explore concepts related to wave energy, solitons, and the relationship between wave velocity, frequency, and wavelength.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Mathematical reasoning, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to understand the relationship between wave amplitude and energy, questioning how to achieve a brighter diffraction pattern in water waves. Some participants introduce the concept of modeling tsunamis as solitons and discuss the implications of wave behavior in shallow water.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with various interpretations being explored. Some participants have offered insights into the mathematical modeling of tsunamis and the physical principles governing wave behavior, but there is no explicit consensus on the questions raised.

Contextual Notes

Participants are considering the effects of wave velocity changes in shallow water and the implications for amplitude, while also questioning the assumptions related to wave properties and modeling techniques.

primarygun
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When a tsunami comes from a deeper region into a shallower region, its amplitude changes?Would you figure out a equation related to the content of energy of a wave in terms of frequency and amplitude?
How can I get a brighter pattern of diffraction of a water wave besides adjusting the hole between two slits, besides decreasing the frequency to a appropiate size?
 
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I can't answer your question exactly, but I'll tell you what I have heard about modeling of tsunamis.

Tsunamis can be modeled as solitons, which are solutions to the wave equation

[tex]u_{t}=6uu_x-u_{xxxx}[/tex]

A soliton is a wave which keeps its shape as it propagates, much like a solution to a linear wave equation. However, this equation is nonlinear and contains a growth or sharpening of the wave term, [tex]uu_x[/tex], and a dispersion term, [tex]u_{xxxx}[/tex]. When these two terms balance out exactly, the wave holds it shape and you have a soliton.

Perhaps a tsunami travels across the ocean as a soliton, and then when it gets near land and hits something on the bottom the dispersion term becomes small compared to the growth term and the wave begins to grow very fast. I don't know for sure though.

Anyway, I don't know if conservation has anything to do with it, but you can search for stuff on solitons and tsunamis and find out whether or not I was lying.
 
How about a common transverse water wave?
 
I'm sure that this isthe answer
Velocity of a wave decreases as the water gets shallow. As described in-

v*v=gh
(v=velocity
g=gravity
h=depth)

as v=fλ

(λ=wave length
f=frequency)

Either f or λ has to decrease.
But as f is a constant where the same emitter is concerned the wavelength decreases.
Velocity is lower in the front of the wave than the back of it because sea gets shallow near the shore. So the wavelength decreases as it gets to the shore. But the amount of water is the same. So the amplitude has to rise. Water is pushed upwards.
 

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