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Ocean surface waves are surface waves that occur in the upper layer of the ocean. They usually result from wind. Some are made by geologic effects like earthquakes or vulcanicity and may travel thousands of miles before striking land. They range in size from small ripples to huge tsunamis.
The overall oscillatory motion on the ocean surface is a combination of a large variety of different types of waves. All these waves are primarily classified according to the generation and restoring mechanisms, which induce oscillations within a wide band of periods and associated wavelengths.
Surface ocean currents are driven by consistent wind patterns that persist throughout time over the entire globe, such as the jet stream. These wind patterns (convection cells) are created by radiation from the Sun beating down on Earth and generating heat.
Since most ocean waves have wavelengths of less than a few hundred meters, most of the deeper ocean is unaffected by surface waves, so even in the strongest storms marine life or submarines can avoid heavy waves by submerging below the wave base.
Most common are surface waves, caused by wind blowing along the air-water interface, creating a disturbance that steadily builds as wind continues to blow and the wave crest rises. Surface waves occur constantly all over the globe, and are the waves you see at the beach under normal conditions.
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.
Waves transmit energy, not water, across the ocean and if not obstructed by anything, they have the potential to travel across an entire ocean basin. Waves are most commonly caused by wind. Wind-driven waves, or surface waves, are created by the friction between wind and surface water.