Field observations of turbulence over a gravel beach

Field measurements of waves, current, and turbulence over a gravel beach are presented using dual ADVO techniques. Turbulence was decomposed using a filtering technique; the quality of the estimated turbulence was examined using ogive curve testing on turbulent shear stress (TSS) to remove wave biased containment. The turbulent dissipation rate was estimated using inertial subrange techniques. The ratio of the TSS to TKE is found to smaller than that in a current-alone flow, suggesting that transport of TKE into the bottom boundary layer (BBL) might be important. The turbulent dissipation rate is found to exceed the shear production, which also indicates the transport of TKE into the BBL might be important. After examining the most terms in the TKE budget as possible, we found that the observed vertical turbulent transport is comparable to the shear production, and contributes to part of gaining TKE in the BBL.