A standing wave that oscillates back and forth in an enclosed or partially enclosed body of water, such as a lake, bay or harbor, typically triggered by a sudden change in atmospheric pressure, strong winds, or a seismic disturbance that sets the whole water body sloshing at its own natural resonant period. Unlike an ordinary wind-driven wave, a seiche can continue rocking for hours after the triggering force has passed, and in enclosed basins such as the Great Lakes it has produced sudden, unexpected water-level swings of several feet along shorelines many miles from where the disturbance began.
Facts
PeriodicityIn some of the Great Lakes and other large bodies of water, the interval between a seiche's high and low can be as much as four to seven hours 1 First DescribedTerm promoted in 1890 by Swiss hydrologist François-Alphonse Forel, who made the first scientific observations of the effect on Lake Geneva 2 Connections
Demonstrated By
Sudden shifts in barometric pressure and strong winds across the Great Lakes basin generate seiches, standing waves that can raise or lower water levels by several feet within hours, most famously on Lake Erie.
Source Encyclopaedia Britannica
Sources
1. What is a seiche?, NOAA National Ocean Service
IntroductionQuote, Introduction
In some of the Great Lakes and other large bodies of water, the time period between the "high" and "low" of a seiche can be as much as four to seven hours. This is very similar to the time period between a high and low tide in the oceans, and is often mistaken as a tide.
2. Seiche, Wikipedia
IntroductionQuote, Introduction
The term was promoted in 1890 by the Swiss hydrologist François-Alphonse Forel, who was the first to make scientific observations of the effect in Lake Geneva.
Encyclopaedia Britannica
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