Waves

How many times have you sat on a beach and looked at the ocean? It is an amazing sight. The waves are fun to splash in, but have you ever wondered what causes waves and how they work? Waves can be gentle and lapping, or they can be rolling and crash onto the shore. What makes the difference?

When you are sitting on the beach, it looks like the waves are rushing right at you. But that is really not the case. The water in a wave is actually rising up out of the water and then coming back down. It usually comes back down in the same or very similar position.

Out at sea, a wave can travel a great distance. Waves can move large ships and other large objects. But once a wave gets closer to the shore, it does not have as much power. It begins to slow down and drag. The top part of the wave keeps going. When you see the cap on a wave, it means that the wave is “breaking” before it goes down under water again.

The wind is usually what causes surface waves. The wind can be blowing hard or it can be blowing softly. The more intense the wind is, the higher the wave will be. The wind pushes the water.