Sea surface slope statistics measured by laser sensor

A description of a scanning laser remote wave slope sensor developed at the Ocean Optics Lab (OOL) of the P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology is given. The device relies on the measurements of specula points in the one component section of surface to compute density probability of wave slope and on the back scattering amplitude to estimate wave curvature distribution. This device is compared with other sensors, the advantage consists in wide angle band range of scanning, portability and the opportunity for shipboard and platform use. The device is capable of scanning the sea surface with a frequency of 8.7 Hz for the heights in the range between 1 and 10 m under the sea surface. The preliminary results obtained from the hydro-physical offshore platform on the Black Sea (Katsiveli in August, 1993) measurements are presented. >