Nonlinear Wave–Wave Interactions in a Mistral Event

This study analyzes the detailed nonlinear wave–wave interactions during 6 hours of wave generation in a mistral event. Nonlinearity and phase coupling are computed using wavelet bicoherence, which is a new technique in analyzing wind–wave and wave–wave interactions. Computations of wavelet bicoherence are conducted for the 13 continuous records of measured wave data. The phase coupling and nonlinear wave–wave interactions are shown to occur at different bicoherence levels, and these levels are different from one record to another. Furthermore, the study shows that there is an increase in nonlinear wave–wave interaction with time.