Acta Mech Sin (2008) 24:267–275
DOI 10.1007/s10409-008-0155-0
RESEARCH PAPER
Generation of unsteady waves by concentrated disturbances
in an inviscid fluid with an inertial surface
D. Q. Lu · S. Q. Dai
Received: 17 May 2007 / Revised: 5 February 2008 / Accepted: 3 March 2008 / Published online: 8 May 2008
© Springer-Verlag 2008
Abstract The surface waves generated by unsteady concen-
trated disturbances in an initially quiescent fluid of infinite
depth with an inertial surface are analytically investigated
for two- and three-dimensional cases. The fluid is assumed
to be inviscid, incompressible and homogenous. The inertial
surface represents the effect of a thin uniform distribution
of non-interacting floating matter. Four types of unsteady
concentrated disturbances and two kinds of initial values are
considered, namely an instantaneous/oscillating mass source
immersed in the fluid, an instantaneous/oscillating impulse
on the surface, an initial impulse on the surface of the fluid,
and an initial displacement of the surface. The linearized
initial-boundary-value problem is formulated within the
framework of potential flow. The solutions in integral form
for the surface elevation are obtained by means of a joint
Laplace–Fourier transform. The asymptotic representations
of the wave motion for large time with a fixed distance-
to-time ratio are derived by using the method of stationary
phase. The effect of the presence of an inertial surface on
the wave motion is analyzed. It is found that the wavelengths
of the transient dispersive waves increase while those of the
steady-state progressive waves decrease. All the wave ampli-
tudes decrease in comparison with those of conventional
The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of
China (10602032), the Shanghai Rising-Star Program (07QA14022),
and the Shanghai Leading Academic Discipline Project (Y0103).
D. Q. Lu (B)
Shanghai Institute of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics,
Shanghai University, 200072 Shanghai, China
e-mail: dqlu@shu.edu.cn; dqlu@graduate.hku.hk
S. Q. Dai
Shanghai Key Laboratory of Mechanics in Energy
and Environment Engineering, 200072 Shanghai, China
e-mail: sqdai@shu.edu.cn
free-surface waves. The explicit expressions for the free-
surface gravity waves can readily be recovered by the present
results as the inertial surface disappears.
Keywords Waves · Inertial surface · Concentrated
disturbances · Asymptotic representation
1 Introduction
As is well known, the oceans in polar regions are gener-
ally covered by ice. According to the physical nature of the
problem considered, two kinds of mathematical models for
the ice-covered ocean surface are customarily employed [1].
When an ocean area is covered by a thin uniform distribution
of non-interacting floating matter, for example, broken ice,
the ocean surface is mathematically modeled as an inertial
surface [2–6]. When an ocean area is covered by an ice sheet
of small thickness, the ocean surface is mathematically ide-
alized as a thin homogenous elastic plate [1,7–14]. As the
flexural rigidity of the plate tends to zero, the inertial surface
model will be useful. The generation of the gravity waves
due to the initial elevation and impulse at the surface of an
inviscid fluid with an inertial surface was first considered by
Mandal and Mukherjee [4,5] for two- and three-dimensional
cases. However, it seems that the general characteristics of
the wave responses to disturbances acting on the fluid with
an inertial surface have not been fully elucidated.
In this paper, dynamic responses of a fluid with an iner-
tial surface to line- and point-concentrated disturbances will
be considered. The fluid is initially quiescent, infinitely deep
and is assumed to be inviscid, incompressible and homoge-
nous. Four types of unsteady concentrated disturbances and
two kind of initial values are considered, namely an instan-
taneous/oscillating mass source immersed in the fluid, an
123
268 D. Q. Lu, S. Q. Dai

instantaneous/oscillating load on the surface, an initial ∂ ∂ 2η P

+ gη + ε 2 = − δ(z), (3)
impulse on the surface, and an initial displacement of the ∂t ∂t ρ
surface. In Sect. 2, the general mathematical model is formu- where η is the elevation of the inertial surface, g the accel-
lated as an initial-boundary-value problem for two- and three- eration of gravity, P(t) the time-dependent strength of the
dimensional cases. The fluid is assumed to be covered by an applied load, and z the field point at the undisturbed inertial
inertial surface of area density ερ with 0 ≤ ε < 1, where ρ is surface. For the two-dimensional cases, z = (x, 0) while for
the density of the fluid and ε is a parameter having the dimen- the three-dimensional cases, z = (x, y, 0).
sion of length. The special case with ε = 0 corresponds to a We impose the initial conditions on , η and the first time
fluid with a clean surface. All the types of disturbances are derivative of η in order to meet the requirement for Eqs. (2)
simultaneously included in the linear mathematical formula- and (3) to be a well-posed initial-boundary-value problem.
tion. In Sect. 3, exact solutions in closed integral forms for Therefore, the initial conditions at z = 0 are
the transient waves due to impulsive line disturbances and
I0
initial concentrated disturbances are given by use of a joint |t=0 = − δ(z), (4)
Laplace–Fourier transform. In order to obtain the principal ρ
η|t=0 = E 0 δ(z), (5)
physical features of the wave motion, it is necessary to adopt

the asymptotic analysis for the integral-form solution. The ∂η


= 0. (6)
method of stationary phase shall be employed to obtain the ∂t
t=0
asymptotic representation of the wave motion for large time Equations (4) and (5) imply that the fluid is initially subject
with a fixed distance-to-time ratio. This approximation has to a surface impulse and elevation concentrated at the origin,
been successfully used to study the classical Cauchy–Poisson where I0 and E 0 are the corresponding constant magnitudes.
problems [15, Sect. 6.4],[16, Sect. 3.7] and their general- Equation (6) shows that the initial velocity of the inertial
ized cases [1,4,5,11–14,17–23]. It is found that the transient surface is zero, which is consistent with the assumption that
waves are dispersive. In Sect. 4, the asymptotic represen- the entire fluid is at rest for t < 0. Moreover, since the finite
tations for the unsteady waves due to oscillating line distur- disturbance must die out at infinity, it is required that
bances are derived. It is found that the unsteady waves consist
of steady-state progressive waves and transient dispersive ∇ → 0 as z → ∞, (7)
waves. In Sect. 5, the solutions for the three-dimensional which imposes a uniqueness on the problem considered.
cases are provided. Finally, discussion and conclusions are Thus, Eqs. (1) to (7) constitute a well-posed problem for
given in Sect. 6.  and η, mathematically as well as physically.
The assumption of linearity allows us to envisage the per-
turbed flow as the superposition of a singular flow and a
2 General mathematical formulation regular flow. The former represents the effect of the mov-
ing singularity in an unbounded domain while the latter the
Without loss of generality, a Cartesian system is used, in influence of the boundary. Thus, we write
which the z axis points vertically upward while z = 0 repre-
sents the undisturbed inertial surface. Therefore, the govern-  = S (x, t; x 0 ) + R (x, t), (8)
ing equation is where S is the potential due to the singularity while R
is a continuous function everywhere in the corresponding
∇ 2  = Mδ(x − x 0 ), (1)
domain and ∇ 2 R = 0. Thus, the relation between the sin-
where (x, t; x 0 ) is the velocity potential for the perturbed gular and regular components can be established through the
flow, M(t) the time-dependent strength of the simple source, boundary conditions at z = 0:
δ(·) the Dirac delta function, x an observation point, t the ∂η ∂R ∂S
time, and x 0 the source point. For two-dimensional cases, − = , (9)
∂t ∂z ∂z
x = (x, z), x 0 = (0, z 0 ) and ∂/∂ y = 0 while for three-
∂R ∂ 2η P ∂S
dimensional cases, x = (x, y, z) and x 0 = (0, 0, z 0 ). + gη + ε 2 = − δ(z) − . (10)
It is assumed that the wave amplitude is very small in com- ∂t ∂t ρ ∂t
parison with the wavelength. Thus, the linearized boundary
conditions will be applied on the undisturbed inertial sur-
3 Transient waves due to instantaneous line
face. According to Rhodes-Robinson [2,3] the kinematic and
disturbances
dynamic conditions at z = 0 are given by
∂η ∂ In this section, the instantaneous line disturbances are con-
− = 0, (2)
∂t ∂z sidered. The time-dependent strengths of the simple source

123
Generation of unsteady waves by concentrated disturbances 269

and applied load are mathematically represented as M(t) = Equation (16) is known as the dispersion relation, as shown
M0 δ(t) and P(t) = P0 δ(t), respectively. Accordingly, the in Fig. 1. A special case of Eq. (16) with ε = 0 corresponds to
singular component in Eq. (8) is the fundamental solution of the dispersion relation for the classical Cauchy–Poisson wave
two-dimensional Laplace equation in an unbounded domain, problem for an inviscid fluid of infinite depth. The dispersion
  relation for gravity waves on the inertial surface is herein
M0 1
 =−
S
ln δ(t), (11) derived by using the Laplace–Fourier integral transform. In
2π r fact, one can also obtain the dispersion equation by means
where r = ||x − x 0 ||. By taking the Laplace–Fourier trans- of the method of separation of variables. It can be seen from
form over Eq. (1) and applying the Jordan lemma and the Eq. (16) that
Cauchy residue theorem, an alternative representation for
Eq. (11) can be given by 
ωlim (ε) = lim ω(k, ε) = g/ε. (18)
k→∞

c+i∞ +∞
M0 1
S = − ds dα
8π 2 i k Equation (16) can be re-written as
c−i∞ −∞
× exp(−k|z − z 0 | + iαx + st), (12)
ω2
k= . (19)
where k = |α|, c is the Laplace convergence abscissa. g − εω2
In order to obtain the formal solution of this initial-
boundary-value problem, it is convenient to introduce a com- Since k > 0, it follows from Eq. (19) that ω < ωlim . Once ε
bination of the Laplace transform with respect to t and the is given, progressive waves with ω ≥ ωlim will not be able to
Fourier transform with respect to spatial variables. For the appear since “the inertial surface is too heavy” [2]. However,
two-dimensional cases, we have the propagation of progressive waves with any frequency is

c+i∞ +∞ possible if the surface tension is included in the mathematical
1 formulation [2]. The ratio of group velocity to phase velocity
{ , η} =
R
ds dα
4π 2 i for the gravity waves on the inertial surface is given by
c−i∞ −∞
˜ exp(kz), η̃} exp(iαx + st).
×{ R
(13)
kC g 1
σ = = , (20)
By substituting Eqs. (12) and (13) into the Laplace–Fourier ω 2(1 + εk)
transforms of boundary conditions (9) and (10), two simul-
taneous algebraic equations are set up for the unknown func- and is shown in Fig. 2.
˜ R and η̃, which can readily be solved. Consequently,
tions 
the formal integral expression for the surface elevation can
be written as
P0 I0
η = M0 ηm (z, t; x 0 ) + ηp (z, t) + ηi (z, t) + E 0 ηe (z, t),
ρ ρ
(14)

where
+∞
1 exp(iαx)
{ηm , ηp , ηi , ηe } = dα
2π 1 + εk
−∞

k
× exp(kz 0 ) cos(ωt), − sin(ωt),
ω

k
− sin(ωt), (1 + εk) cos(ωt) , (15)
ω

ω0
ω(k, ε) = , (16)
(1 + εk)1/2
 Fig. 1 Wave frequencies versus wave-number. (i) ε = 0 m; (ii) ε =
ω0 = ω(k, 0) = gk. (17) 0.005 m; (iii) ε = 0.01 m; (iv) ε = 0.05 m; (v) ε = 0.1 m

123
270 D. Q. Lu, S. Q. Dai

Fig. 2 The ratio of group velocities to phase speeds. (i) ε = 0 m; Fig. 3 Group velocities versus wave-number. (i) ε = 0 m; (ii) ε =
(ii) ε = 0.005 m; (iii) ε = 0.01 m; (iv) ε = 0.05 m; (v) ε = 0.1 m 0.005 m; (iii) ε = 0.01 m; (iv) ε = 0.05 m; (v) ε = 0.1 m

It is noted that ηi in Eq. (15) is identical with ηp and will biquadratic equation, for which the single real positive root
not be shown next. We re-write Eq. (15) as with respect to k, denoted by kε , can be exactly given as
2 +∞   1/2
1 
2
exp(itmn ) 1 3 1
{ηm , ηp , ηe } = dk k = kε = − + −a
4π 1 + εk 2ε 2 4
m=1 n=1 0  −1/2
1/2 
  1 1 1
n+1 ik + +a+ −a , (26)
× exp(kz 0 ), (−1) , 1 + εk , (21) 2 4 4
ω
where
where
 2 2 1/3  
x 2ε k0 εk0 b 1/3
mn (k) = (−1)m+1 k + (−1)n+1 ω. (22) a=4 − , (27)
t 3b 18
According to the stationary-phase approximation, the b = −9 + (81 + 768εk0 )1/2 . (28)
dominant contribution to the integral in Eq. (21) stems from
the stationary points of mn . It is easily seen that for x > 0, For a fixed x/t, kε decreases from k0 with increasing ε, as
12 and 21 have stationary points while for x < 0, 22 shown in Fig. 4.
and 11 have stationary points, and the stationary points for By a straightforward application of the Stokes method of
both x > 0 and x < 0 are the same. The solutions for the stationary phase, the asymptotic representation of Eq. (21)
stationary points are determined by can be given as

∂mn {ηm , ηp , ηe } 
1
= 0. (23) 
∂k (2π |ωε |t) (1 + εkε )
1/2
 
A straightforward derivation for Eq. (23) yields kε
× exp(kε z 0 ) cos ψ, sin ψ, (1 + εkε ) cos ψ , (29)
ωε
|x|
Q(k, k0 , ε) = − Cg where
t
√

g 1 1 1
= √ −√ · = 0, (24) ψ = kε |x| − ωε t + π/4, (30)
2 k0 k (1 + εk)3/2
ωε = ω(kε , ε), (31)
where C g (k, ε) = ∂ω/∂k is the group velocity and √
 ∂ 2 ω(kε , ε) g(1 + 4εkε )
ωε = = − 3/2 . (32)
k0 = gt 2 /4x 2 (25) ∂k 2
4kε (1 + εkε )5/2
is the root of Q(k, k0 , 0) = 0. Equation (24) is shown in It is noted that ωε < 0 holds for all kε > 0. Thus, Eq. (29)
Fig. 3. It is noted that Eq. (24) can be transformed into a holds for |x|/t > 0.

123
Generation of unsteady waves by concentrated disturbances 271

where
2  +∞
1  exp[(−1)n+1 ikx]
{ζmS , ζpS } = dk
2π 1 + εk
n=1 0
 
iµ exp(kz 0 + iµt) k exp(iνt)
× ,− 2 , (36)
ω2 − µ2 ω − ν2
2 +∞
1 
2
exp(itmn )
{ζmT , ζpT } = dk
4π 1 + εk
m=1 n=1 0

exp(kz 0 )[(−1)n+1 iω + iµ]
× − ,
ω2 − µ2

k[1 + (−1)n+1 ω−1 ν]
. (37)
ω2 − ν 2
Two approaches available for the asymptotic representa-
tion of Eq. (36) with large |x| are given by Debnath
[24, Sect. 2.5] and will not be reproduced here. Following
Fig. 4 Wave-numbers versus x at t = 15 s. (i) ε = 0 m; (ii) ε = Debnath [24], we have
0.005 m; (iii) ε = 0.01 m; (iv) ε = 0.05 m; (v) ε = 0.1 m 
µ exp(kµ z 0 − ikµ x + iµt)
{ζm , ζp } 
S S
,
1 + εkµ

ikν exp(−ikν x + iνt)
4 Unsteady waves due to oscillating line disturbances , (38)
1 + εkν
In this section, the oscillating line disturbances are consid- where
ered. Accordingly, the time-dependent strengths of the sim-  
µ2 ν2
ple source and applied load are mathematically represented {kµ , kν } = , . (39)
g − εµ2 g − εν 2
as M(t) = M0 exp(iµt)H(t) and P(t) = P0 exp(iνt)H(t),
respectively, where H(t) is the Heaviside step function, µ and ζmS and ζpS represent the progressive waves with frequencies
ν are constant. Thus, the governing equation and the bound- µ and ν, traveling with the phase speeds (g − εµ2 )/µ and
ary conditions are Eqs. (1) to (3) while the initial conditions (g − εν 2 )/ν and the group velocities (g − εµ)2 /2gµ and
are Eqs. (4) to (6) with I0 = E 0 = 0. (g − εν)2 /2gν, respectively. It can be seen from Eqs. (38)
Upon the integral transform and other mathematical and (39) that no outgoing progressive waves are possible for
√ √
manipulation, the formal integral expression for the surface µ ≥ g/ε or ν ≥ g/ε, as was remarked by Rhodes-
elevation due to the oscillating line disturbances can be Robinson [2,3]. In this case, the wave motion consists of the
written as transient component (37) only.
Obviously, the analytic form of Eq. (37) is similar to that
P0 of Eq. (21). ζmT and ζpT represent the transient dispersive
η = M0 ζm (x, t; x 0 ) + ζp (z, t), (33)
ρ waves. For the k integration in Eq. (37), the method of sta-
tionary phase is used for large t with |x|/t held fixed. The
where mathematical procedure for the asymptotic representation of
Eq. (37) is similar to that in Sect. 3 for Eq. (21). Finally, we
 +∞
c+i∞  have
1 exp(kz 0 )s k
{ζm , ζp } = ,− 1
4π 2 i s − iµ s − iν {ζmT , ζpT }  
c−i∞ −∞ (2π |ωε |t) (1 + εkε )
1/2

exp(iαx + st) exp(kε z 0 )(ωε sin ψ − iµ cos ψ)
× dαds. (34) × − ,
(1 + εk)(s 2 + ω2 ) ωε2 − µ2

kε (cos ψ + iωε−1 ν sin ψ)
By taking a contour integration in the complex s plane, , (40)
ωε2 − ν 2
Eq. (34) can be re-written as
where kε , ωε , ωε and ψ are given in Sect. 3.
It should be noted that the asymptotic solution (38) is
{ζm , ζp } = {ζmS , ζpS } + {ζmT , ζpT }, (35) derived for large |x| while the asymptotic solution (40) is

123
272 D. Q. Lu, S. Q. Dai

obtained for large t with |x|/t fixed. ζmT and ζpT break down at Equation (43) can be re-written as
the critical points ωε = µ2 and ωε = ν 2 , respectively, where
the poles for Eq. (36) and the stationary points for Eq. (37) are +∞
1 K J0 (K R)
merged. Thus, a special asymptotic device should be invoked {ηm , ηp , ηe } = dK
2π 1 + εK
[24]. In combining these two solutions, two possible cases 0
for the region of validity, (i) kε < kµ and kε < kν ; and (ii) 
K
kε > kµ and kε > kν , should be considered. It is noted that × exp(K z 0 ) cos(t), − sin(t),

case (i) is inadmissible for the steady response in view of 
the group velocity. However, case (ii) is always possible for (1 + εK ) cos(t) , (44)
sufficiently large time [25]. Therefore, the formal solutions
for the wave profiles due to an oscillating disturbances are
where J0 (K R) is the zeroth-order Bessel function of the first
kind. For the sake of consistency, we replace K and  with
{ζm , ζp } = {ζmS H(t − 2gµ|x|/(g − εµ)2 ), k and ω for Eq. (44) without change in its exactness, respec-
tively.
ζpS H(t − 2gν|x|/(g − εν)2 )} + {ζmT , ζpT }. (41)
Furthermore, we may replace J0 (k R) by its asymptotic
formula for large k R,
 1/2  
5 Waves due to point disturbances 2 π
J0 (k R)  cos k R − . (45)
πk R 4
Firstly, the instantaneous point disturbances are considered.
The time-dependent strengths of the simple source and app- Thus, we have an approximation for Eq. (44) as follows
lied load are mathematically represented as M(t) = M0 δ(t)
2 +∞ 
and P(t) = P0 δ(t), respectively. Accordingly, the singular 1 
2
k 1/2 exp(itmn )
component in Eq. (8) is the fundamental solution of three- {ηm , ηp , ηe }  dk
4π 2π R 1 + εk
dimensional Laplace equation in an unbounded domain, m=1 n=1 0
 
ik
× exp(kz 0 ), (−1)n+1 , 1 + εk , (46)
M ω
S = − δ(t)
4πr

c+i∞ +∞ +∞ where
M
=− ds dαdβ  
16π 3 i (−1)m+1 π
c−i∞ −∞ −∞ mn = kR − + (−1)n+1 ω. (47)
t 4
1
× exp[−K |z − z 0 | + iF + st], (42)
K The mathematical procedure to obtain the asymptotic rep-
resentation of Eq. (46) follows that in Sect. 3 for Eq. (21).

where K = α 2 + β 2 , F = αx + βy. Thus, the asymptotic representation of Eq. (46) can be given
By taking a Laplace–Fourier transform similar to Eq. (13), as
we have the solutions for the transient waves due to the instan- 
1/2
taneous point disturbances: kε
{ηm , ηp , ηe }  exp(kε z 0 ) cos ϕ,
2π(|ωε |Rt)1/2 (1 + εkε )

+∞ +∞ kε
sin ϕ, (1 + εkε ) cos ϕ , (48)
1 exp(iF)
{ηm , ηp , ηe } = dαdβ ωε
4π 2 1 + εK ϕ = kε R − ωε t. (49)
−∞ −∞

K
× exp(K z 0 ) cos(t), − sin(t), Next, the oscillating point disturbances are considered.

 Upon a similar mathematical manipulation as above, the for-
(1 + εK ) cos(t) , (43) mal integral expression for the surface elevation due to the
oscillating point disturbances can be written as

where (K , ε) = ω(K , ε). With a change of variables {ζm , ζp } = {ζmS H(t − 2gµR/(g − εµ)2 ),
{x, y} = R{cos θ, sin θ }, {α, β} = K {cos φ, sin φ}. ζpS H(t − 2gν R/(g − εν)2 )} + {ζmT , ζpT }, (50)

123
Generation of unsteady waves by concentrated disturbances 273

where solutions for the wave numbers (i.e. kε , kµ and kν ) and the
+∞ asymptotic representations for the wave profiles (i.e. ηm , ηp ,
1 kJ0 (k R) ηe , ζm and ζp ) due to the instantaneous and oscillating con-
{ζmS , ζpS } = dk
2π 1 + εk centrated disturbances have been analytically obtained.
0
  It can be seen from Figs. 1, 2 and 3 that for a fixed k, the
iµ exp(kz 0 + iµt) k exp(iνt)
× , − , (51) wave frequency, group velocity, and the ratio of group veloc-
ω2 − µ2 ω2 − ν 2 ity to phase velocity for the dispersive waves decrease as the
2 
+∞ ε increase from zero. Figure 4 shows that for fixed x and t,
1  exp[(−1)n+1 iωt]
{ζm , ζp } =
T T
kJ0 (k R)dk the wavelength increases with increasing ε. The effect of the
2π 1 + εk
n=1 0 presence of an inertial surface on the transient and steady-
 state wave profiles due to the line disturbances is shown in
exp(kz 0 )[(−1)n+1 iω + iµ]
× − , Figs. 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, respectively. The wave profiles in
ω2 − µ2

k[1 + (−1)n+1 ω−1 ν]
. (52)
ω2 − ν 2
The asymptotic representations of Eqs. (51) and (52) are

{ζmS , ζpS }
 1/2
1 µkµ exp[kµ z 0 +i(µt −kµ R +π/4)]
 ,
(2π R) 1/2 1+εkµ
3/2 
ikν exp[i(νt − kν R + π/4)]
, (53)
1 + εkν

1/2
kε
{ζmT , ζpT } 
2π(|ωε |Rt)1/2 (1 + εkε )

exp(kε z 0 )(ωε sin ϕ − iµ cos ϕ)
× − ,
ωε2 − µ2

kε (cos ϕ + iωε−1 ν sin ϕ)
. (54)
ωε2 − ν 2
Fig. 5 Two-dimensional transient waves ηm versus x at t = 15 s,
z 0 = −1 m
6 Discussion and conclusions

We might check the present results by taking a correspond-

ing limit to recover the previous results for the pure gravity
waves. When ε = 0, the asymptotic solutions given by Stoker
[15, Eqs. (6.5.13) and (6.5.12)] can be recovered from ηp and
ηe in Eq. (29) by replacing kε , ωε and ωε with k0 , ω0 and
ω0 , respectively, where ω0 = ∂ 2 ω0 (k0 )/∂k 2 ; the solution
obtained by Miles [26, Eq. (3.12)] can be recovered from ζp
in Eq. (41); the solution given by Stoker [15, Eq. (6.5.15)]
can be recovered from ηp in Eq. (48); the result obtained
by Debnath [24, Eq. (3.5.7)] can be recovered from ζp in
Eqs. (53) and (54). The procedure presented here for obtain-
ing the wave elevations with an inertial surface provides an
alternative method to obtain the free-surface gravity waves
formulated in the Cauchy–Poisson problem. In addition, the
wave profiles due to a submerged source are derived. The
principal interest herein is to study the effect of the pres-
ence of an inertial surface on the dispersion relation and the
generation and propagation of the gravity waves. The exact Fig. 6 Two-dimensional transient waves ηp versus x at t = 15 s

123
274
Fig. 7 Two-dimensional transient waves ηe versus x at t = 15 s
Fig. 8 Two-dimensional steady wave profile ζmS versus x at t = 15 s,
z 0 = −1 m and ω = 2 s−1
Figs. 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 are obtained by summing up the views
of many observers moving with speed x/t for the same
instant. Figures 5, 6 and 7 indicate that the amplitudes of
the transient dispersive waves decease while the wavelengths
increase due to the presence of an inertial surface. Figures 8
and 9 show that both the amplitudes and the wavelengths of
the steady-state progressive waves decease due to the pres-
ence of an inertial surface. As the frequency of the applied
source or external load increase, the effect of inertial surface
become more significant.
It is noted that the dispersive characteristics and wave sys-
tems for the case of three-dimensional problem are of the
same nature as those for the two dimensions. The oscillatory
123
D. Q. Lu, S. Q. Dai
Fig. 9 Two-dimensional steady wave profile ζmS versus x at t = 15 s,
z 0 = −1 m and ω = 4 s−1
factors in two- and three dimensions do not differ essen-
tially from each other, while the wave amplitude factors are
different.
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