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An Interactive Nearshore Wave Simulator for Rapid Design Prototyping and Natural Hazard Education.

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Title: An Interactive Nearshore Wave Simulator for Rapid Design Prototyping and Natural Hazard Education.
Authors: Lynett, Patrick1 (AUTHOR) plynett@usc.edu, Ebrahimi, Behzad1 (AUTHOR) bebrahim@usc.edu, Son, Sangyoung2 (AUTHOR) sson@korea.ac.kr, Hwang, Sooncheol3 (AUTHOR) shwang@kiost.ac.kr, Bak, Spicer4 (AUTHOR) spicer.bak@erdc.dren.mil
Source: Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal & Ocean Engineering. Jul2026, Vol. 152 Issue 4, p1-13. 13p.
Subjects: Coastal engineering, Water waves, Dynamic models, Emergency management education, Breakwaters, Boussinesq equations
Abstract: Celeris-WebGPU (version 1) is a browser-based interactive simulator for nearshore waves, designed to support coastal engineering design and natural hazard education. The system implements two depth-integrated, phase-resolving wave models: a standard mode solving the enhanced Boussinesq equations for weakly nonlinear weakly dispersive waves and a high-order mode solving the fully nonlinear extended Boussinesq equations for improved accuracy. The targeted use for the standard mode is rapid, iterative, and interactive simulations, while the high-order mode is best for design-level simulations in which accuracy is paramount. Both modes use a hybrid finite-volume–finite-difference approach; the standard mode's accuracy is of second-order in space, while the high-order mode's accuracy is of fourth-order. The simulation and visualization pipeline runs on the GPU via WebGPU, enabling faster-than-real-time performance on typical desktop hardware within a web browser. We show the accuracy and capabilities of Celeris-WebGPU with benchmark tests, including regular wave breaking on a beach, solitary wave run-up on a conical island, and nearshore wave transformation at Duck, North Carolina. An example design scenario adding a breakwater offshore of Oceanside, California, is presented, demonstrating the rapid prototyping capabilities of the platform. Results show good agreement with experimental and field data and illustrate how the WebGPU deployment allows interactive modeling with advanced physics directly in a web browser. The accessible framework of Celeris-WebGPU can broaden the use of physics-based wave simulation in both engineering practice and education. Practical Applications: Coastal engineers and planners often need to evaluate how waves interact with shorelines, structures, and beach features, but traditional wave modeling tools can be slow to set up and difficult to share. Celeris-WebGPU addresses these drawbacks by running a physics-based wave simulation directly in a web browser, with no installation required. An engineer can upload local bathymetry, set wave conditions, and rapidly visualize how waves shoal, break, or wrap around a proposed coastal structure. For example, a designer can paint a virtual offshore breakwater into the model and immediately observe how wave heights and currents adjust, enabling rapid comparison of different designs in minutes rather than hours. In teaching settings, students can experiment with changing beach slopes or wave periods and watch real-time animations of coastal transformation and wave run-up, reinforcing theory through visual feedback. By making accurate wave modeling accessible on any GPU-enabled device, Celeris-WebGPU supports faster, collaborative coastal design and helps communities better understand and prepare for natural wave hazards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal & Ocean Engineering is the property of American Society of Civil Engineers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Engineering Source
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DbLabel: Engineering Source
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PubType: Academic Journal
PubTypeId: academicJournal
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IllustrationInfo
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  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: An Interactive Nearshore Wave Simulator for Rapid Design Prototyping and Natural Hazard Education.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lynett%2C+Patrick%22">Lynett, Patrick</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> plynett@usc.edu</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Ebrahimi%2C+Behzad%22">Ebrahimi, Behzad</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> bebrahim@usc.edu</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Son%2C+Sangyoung%22">Son, Sangyoung</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> sson@korea.ac.kr</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hwang%2C+Sooncheol%22">Hwang, Sooncheol</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> shwang@kiost.ac.kr</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Bak%2C+Spicer%22">Bak, Spicer</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> spicer.bak@erdc.dren.mil</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Waterway%2C+Port%2C+Coastal+%26+Ocean+Engineering%22">Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal & Ocean Engineering</searchLink>. Jul2026, Vol. 152 Issue 4, p1-13. 13p.
– Name: Subject
  Label: Subjects
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Coastal+engineering%22">Coastal engineering</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Water+waves%22">Water waves</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Dynamic+models%22">Dynamic models</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Emergency+management+education%22">Emergency management education</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Breakwaters%22">Breakwaters</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Boussinesq+equations%22">Boussinesq equations</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Celeris-WebGPU (version 1) is a browser-based interactive simulator for nearshore waves, designed to support coastal engineering design and natural hazard education. The system implements two depth-integrated, phase-resolving wave models: a standard mode solving the enhanced Boussinesq equations for weakly nonlinear weakly dispersive waves and a high-order mode solving the fully nonlinear extended Boussinesq equations for improved accuracy. The targeted use for the standard mode is rapid, iterative, and interactive simulations, while the high-order mode is best for design-level simulations in which accuracy is paramount. Both modes use a hybrid finite-volume–finite-difference approach; the standard mode's accuracy is of second-order in space, while the high-order mode's accuracy is of fourth-order. The simulation and visualization pipeline runs on the GPU via WebGPU, enabling faster-than-real-time performance on typical desktop hardware within a web browser. We show the accuracy and capabilities of Celeris-WebGPU with benchmark tests, including regular wave breaking on a beach, solitary wave run-up on a conical island, and nearshore wave transformation at Duck, North Carolina. An example design scenario adding a breakwater offshore of Oceanside, California, is presented, demonstrating the rapid prototyping capabilities of the platform. Results show good agreement with experimental and field data and illustrate how the WebGPU deployment allows interactive modeling with advanced physics directly in a web browser. The accessible framework of Celeris-WebGPU can broaden the use of physics-based wave simulation in both engineering practice and education. Practical Applications: Coastal engineers and planners often need to evaluate how waves interact with shorelines, structures, and beach features, but traditional wave modeling tools can be slow to set up and difficult to share. Celeris-WebGPU addresses these drawbacks by running a physics-based wave simulation directly in a web browser, with no installation required. An engineer can upload local bathymetry, set wave conditions, and rapidly visualize how waves shoal, break, or wrap around a proposed coastal structure. For example, a designer can paint a virtual offshore breakwater into the model and immediately observe how wave heights and currents adjust, enabling rapid comparison of different designs in minutes rather than hours. In teaching settings, students can experiment with changing beach slopes or wave periods and watch real-time animations of coastal transformation and wave run-up, reinforcing theory through visual feedback. By making accurate wave modeling accessible on any GPU-enabled device, Celeris-WebGPU supports faster, collaborative coastal design and helps communities better understand and prepare for natural wave hazards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal & Ocean Engineering is the property of American Society of Civil Engineers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=egs&AN=193805339
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1061/JWPED5.WWENG-2370
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 13
        StartPage: 1
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Coastal engineering
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Water waves
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Dynamic models
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Emergency management education
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Breakwaters
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Boussinesq equations
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: An Interactive Nearshore Wave Simulator for Rapid Design Prototyping and Natural Hazard Education.
        Type: main
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          Name:
            NameFull: Lynett, Patrick
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            NameFull: Ebrahimi, Behzad
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            NameFull: Son, Sangyoung
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            NameFull: Hwang, Sooncheol
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            NameFull: Bak, Spicer
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          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 07
              Text: Jul2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
          Identifiers:
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              Value: 0733950X
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              Value: 152
            – Type: issue
              Value: 4
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Journal of Waterway, Port, Coastal & Ocean Engineering
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