Authors: Zilman G.; Miloh T.

Source: Journal of Ship Research, Volume 45, Number 2, June 2001 , pp. 150-163(14)

Publisher: Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME)

Abstract:

Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) ship wake images in light wind and calm sea conditions frequently appear in the form of a bright V with a half-angle of 2 to 3 deg. Sophisticated and conflicting explanations of this phenomenon, based on the Bragg scattering mechanism, have been proposed. There is a belief that the narrow V-wake is not a part of the Kelvin wake. An alternative approach, which is not generally accepted, suggests that short divergent Kelvin waves may contribute to the V-wake imaging although these waves are mixed with unsteady surface waves generated by the ship-induced turbulence. Ship-generated divergent waves contaminated by surfactants and their radar backscattering cross section are studied. The hull of the ship is represented by a single layer of hydrodynamic singularities. The Green function of a point source moving below a free surface covered by surfactants is derived. A closed-form asymptotic solution for the far ship wave wake is obtained. It is used to calculate analytically the corresponding radar backscattering cross section. The radiative, viscous, and surfactant-induced decay of the V-wake brightness along the V-arms is discussed. The theoretical results are compared against available experimental data.

Language: English

Document Type: Research article

Publication date: 2001-06-01

More about this publication?

• The Journal of Ship Research is a quarterly publication providing highly technical papers on applied research in hydrodynamics, propulsion, ship motions, structures, and vibrations. While the Journal requires that papers present the results of research that advances ship and ocean science and engineering, most contributions bear directly on other disciplines, such as civil and mechanical engineering, applied mathematics, and numerical analysis. High quality papers are contributed from the U.S., Canada and overseas, with representation from established authorities as well as new researchers.
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