Dynamicity of multi-channel rip currents induced by rhythmic sandbars

Abstract

Abstract. In response to frequent fatal beach drownings, China's first operational attempt on the rip current hazard investigation was made by the National Marine Hazard Mitigation Service (NMHMS). A great number of recreational beaches were found developing rip currents interlaced with rhythmic sandbars, varying by season and location evidenced by satellite images and morphodynamic calculation. Considering insufficient understanding of the multi-channel rip system, case analysis and numerical study were conducted to explore its dynamicity and circulation characteristics under various wave climates in present work. The strength of rip currents was generally proportional to wave height and channel width under certain limits. Increasing wave height was not always a promotion and could even weaken the rip current due to the strong wave-current shear. Interesting pump and feed interactions between adjacent rip currents in the multi-channel system were observed. The rip current might be totally absent in narrow channels when the majority of water flows through neighboring broader pathways. The rip current was highly sensitive to the incident wave angle. Alongshore currents prevailed over the rip current when the wave angle reached 11 degrees to shore normal, which was not favorable to the existence of channeled sandbars. Vortices appeared around the edge of the bar owing to nonuniform wave breaking over rapid-varying bathymetry. The setup water was created shoreward by the sandbar array and substantially increased as the wave deviated from the normal incidence. The water surface depression in the rip channel was not observed as the wave angle increased, which fundamentally explained why the rip current could not persist when the incident wave became slightly oblique. In future, incident wave angle should be further incorporated into empirical formulas or probabilistic models to predict the rip current for expected improvement in accuracy.