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Earth and Space Sciences · Glossary

What is Kelvin wave?

Definition 21.13 University Earth and Space Sciences — Year 3 · Chapter 21 — Ocean Dynamics

An oceanic Kelvin wave is a long gravity wave that travels along a coast, or along the equator, with no velocity across it, its height decreasing exponentially away from the coast over the Rossby radius. Along a coast it travels with the coast on its right in the Northern Hemisphere, on its left in the Southern.

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