Abstract
Ship Shoal is an elongated sand shoal located along the 10 m isobath in south-central Louisiana adjacent to a rapidly eroding barrier island complex, Isles Dernieres. High quality sand resources from this shoal are considered as a viable source for the long term maintenance of the adjacent barrier islands. Previous wave modelling studies suggest that the shoal acts as a submerged barrier and mitigates storm waves. The present investigation employs a fully spectral finite element model to estimate the wave transformation over the shoal during a cold front generated storm event in April, 2005. MIKE 21, a spectral wave model, was implemented for the eastern Ship Shoal area at a high resolution scale, to estimate wave attenuation over the shoal and to better understand the directional spectrum when the storm–generated waves cross the shoal.