Wind-Wave Characterization in a Wind-Jet Region: The Ebro Delta Case

This manuscript describes the wind-wave generation, development and fading in a complex area: a wind-jet region. The study region is the offshore Ebro Delta (NW Mediterranean Sea) where strong cross-shelf winds occur due to a topographic channelization. This leads to relatively short-fetch conditions, which interact with the swell component. The third-generation wave model Simulating WAves Nearshore (SWAN) is implemented and fed by high-resolution wind fields. A combination of buoy and High Frequency (HF) radar data is used for model validation, resulting in a reasonable level of agreement. The numerical results characterize the wind-wave evolution during a wind jet. A bimodal spectrum is observed due to the interaction of swell and sea systems. The wave directional spreading exhibits lower values at the wind-jet axis. Finally, a reliability analysis of the wave data from an HF radar deployed at the region is carried out.