The breaking of waves is studied by fluid dynamics, a sub-discipline of physics that studies the science behind liquids and gases. Scientists have concluded that waves break when their amplitude reaches a critical level that causes large amounts of wave energy to be transformed into turbulent kinetic energy, like a ball rolling down the hill. In other words, when waves reach shallow waters – usually near coastlines – they increase in height, and their crests meet the Law of Gravitation. The waves break. That is what wave shoaling tells us.

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Why do waves break?

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