Long Waves

Tidal waves in rivers and seas, flood waves in rivers, but also oscillations in harbour basins are long waves relative to the water depth. A mathematical formulation can be obtained by integrating the general hydrodynamic equations over the depth or over a river cross-section. To understand the principles, it is sufficient to use a very much simplified set of equations in this chapter and the next one. For completeness, some of the corresponding results for the complete equations are given in appendix 1. For further reference, you can consult books such as Jansen (1979) or Cunge et al (1980).