Observation and modelling of infragravity waves at a large meso-tidal inlet and lagoon

Abstract

The role of infragravity waves (IG waves) in beach and dune erosion or in flood hazard has been extensively studied on open beaches. In contrast, the detailed characterization of IG waves and their contribution to the Total Water Level (TWL) along the shore of inlets received little attention so far. In such environment, there is a real lack of in situ observations of waves and hydrodynamics conditions at appropriate spatial and temporal coverage to study the role of infragravity (IG) waves (long waves of frequency typically ranging between 0.004 Hz and 0.04–0.05 Hz) on coastal hazards. This contribution is based on field observations collected at the Arcachon Lagoon, a shallow semi-enclosed lagoon connected to the ocean by a large tidal inlet, located in southwest France. Analyses combine observations made at several locations during storm events within the inlet and the lagoon with numerical simulation with the XBeach surfbeat model to explore the spatial variability of IG waves and simulate observed, historical, and idealized storm conditions. The results show that IG waves are substantial during typical winter storms at the inlet and range from Hm0 = 0.8 to over 1 m across the ebb delta and about 0.4–0.6 m in the inner part of the inlet. At the lagoon entrance, IG waves remain substantial (about 0.1–0.2 m) and decrease to a few centimeters at the lagoon shore. The spatial variability and magnitude of IG waves along the inlet coast, simulated for the historical storms, are quite comparable to those observed during classical winter, and do not increase linearly with offshore wave energy. However, both observations and simulations reveal local amplifications of IG waves in the inner part of the inlet, especially along the sheltered coast were IG waves dominate the variance of free surface elevation, reaching about 0.6–0.7 m during common storms and more than 1 m for an extreme storm scenario. A numerical experiment indicates that IG wave reflection from one coast to the other contributes up to 35–40% of the measured IG wave height at a hot spot located along the sheltered coast. Finally, the contribution of IG waves to TWL at the shore on both sides of the inlet has been estimated to be about 0.4–0.6 m for a common storm and 0.6–0.9 m for an extreme scenario, locally peaking at 0.74 and 1.1 m respectively and overpassing the contribution of wave-induced setup. This work provides new insights into the contribution of IG waves to TWL and its implications for overtopping flooding hazard and overwash processes at large inlets, highlighting the need to consider IG waves in Early Warning Systems or hazard mapping for flood prevention plans in these environments.