Harbor Development Study Interim Report December, 1951

A general objective of the Harbor Development study is the investigation of the wave energy distribution in harbor areas. Treated in a general way, the energy distribution in a harbor can be considered in two parts. The first concerns the amount and distribution of energy entering the harbor through the breakwater opening. Second is the consideration of the redistribution of energy by reflection and absorption at the harbor boundaries. The first part, that of diffraction through breakwater openings, has been presented by this Laboratory in previous progress reports(l). The second part, that of reflection and absorption at harbor boundaries, is the subject of this report. These factors are important in harbor design because the resultant wave pattern in a harbor is determined by both the incident and reflected waves. In any harbor with reflecting boundaries the resultant wave pattern is usually complex and an exact solution by graphical or mathematical treatment would prove very difficult. However, an approximate graphical solution, developed recently by this Laboratory, appears promising. This report presents the results of extensive measurements of wave disturbances in two idealized harbors and compares these results with those of the graphical analysis.