Laboratory and theoretical modeling of air-sea momentum transfer under severe wind conditions

The laboratory experiments on investigation of aerodynamic resistance of the waved water surface under severe wind conditions (up to U-10 approximate to 40 m s(-1)) were carried out, complemented by measurements of the wind-wave spectra. The tendency to saturation of the surface drag was observed for wind speeds exceeding 25 m s(-1), accompanied by the saturation of wind-wave slopes. The effect of surface drag saturation can be explained quantitatively within the quasi-linear model of the air boundary layer above the waved water surface, when the contribution of the short-wave part of the wind-wave spectrum to aerodynamic resistance of the water surface is taken into account.