Characteristics of iceberg calving-generated waves based on three-dimensional SPH simulations

Large-scale icebergs calving into water often generate waves that may threaten human lives or passing ships. The formation and evolution of such three-dimensional (3D) waves in the near field are still not fully understood. In this paper, a 3D numerical model based on the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) open source code DualSPHysics was established to simulate the generation and evolution processes of waves caused by icebergs calving into water. The model is validated with available large-scale laboratory tests. The 3D characteristics in the near field of the waves are presented and analyzed in detail. The results indicate that iceberg calving can generate three main waves: a leading wave produced by the initial entry of the iceberg into the water; a second wave induced by the collapse of the water jet; and a third wave caused by the resurfacing of the iceberg. The reflux tail blocked by the reflux front may appear prior to the second wave, which can develop into a constantly changing wavefront, and then form a step-like flow structure in the near field by linking these two wavefronts. The shapes of the multiple wavefronts outlined by the leading wave and the trailing waves in the near field are closely related to the iceberg geometry. However, the wavefronts gradually develop into a semicircular shape in the far field irrespective of the iceberg geometry. These findings are helpful for hazard assessments of iceberg calving-generated waves.