In physics, a surface wave is a mechanical wave that propagates along the interface between differing media. A common example is gravity waves along the surface of liquids, such as ocean waves. Gravity waves can also occur within liquids, at the interface between two fluids with different densities.

Surface waves travel more slowly through Earth material at the planet’s surface and are predominantly lower frequency than body waves. They are easily distinguished on a seismogram. Shallow earthquakes produce stronger surface waves; the strength of the surface waves are reduced in deeper earthquakes. Surface waves arrive after the body waves.

2023年11月21日 · Most commonly, scientists use the term "surface wave" to refer to a wave that is generated by an earthquake and travels along the surface of the earth. A mechanical wave is a wave that...

2025年4月1日 · A surface wave is a wave that travels along the surface of a medium. Ocean waves are the best-known examples of surface waves. In a surface wave, particles of the medium move up and down as well as back and forth in an overall circular motion. The particles don’t actually move closer to shore as the waves pass through.

In physics, a surface wave can refer to a mechanical wave that propagates along the interface between differing media, usually two fluids with different densities. A surface wave can also be an electromagnetic wave guided by a refractive index gradient.

2020年1月1日 · A surface wave is an inhomogeneous and self-sustaining wave at material surfaces or interfaces which propagates with a velocity being different from the velocities of elastic waves as a consequence of the fulfillment of boundary conditions.

2023年3月20日 · Surface waves refer to a type of wave that travels along the interface between two different media, such as the air and the ocean, or between two layers of a fluid. These waves are also known as boundary waves because they propagate along the …

Surface waves travel along the surface between sources and receivers, crossing remote areas and thereby picking up invaluable information about along-path upper-mantle structure that remains elusive to body waves.

Surface waves are the most prominent phases recorded at teleseismic distances at periods longer than 30 s, especially from shallow-focus earthquakes. Two types of surface waves are observed, distinguished by their polarization during propagation through the Earth: Love (SH) and Rayleigh (P–SV) waves, recorded on the transverse and vertical ...

Surface waves can exist at the interface between an ordinary material and a nonlinear material. It has been shown that when the lower refractive index material has a positive Kerr coefficient, …