Combining Numerical Simulations and Normalized Scalar Product Strategy: A New Tool for Predicting Beach Inundation

Abstract

The skills of the Normalized Scalar Product (NSP) strategy, commonly used to estimate the wave field, as well as bathymetry and sea-surface current, from X-band radar images, are investigated with the aim to better understand coastal inundation during extreme events. Numerical simulations performed using a Nonlinear Shallow-Water Equations (NSWE) solver are run over a real-world barred beach (baseline tests). Both bathymetry and wave fields, induced by reproducing specific storm conditions, are estimated in the offshore portion of the domain exploiting the capabilities of the NSP approach. Such estimates are then used as input conditions for additional NSWE simulations aimed at propagating waves up to the coast (flood simulations). Two different wave spectra, which mimic the actual storm conditions occurring along the coast of Senigallia (Adriatic Sea, central Italy), have been simulated. The beach inundations obtained from baseline and flood tests related to both storm conditions are compared. The results confirm that good predictions can be obtained using the combined NSP–NSWE approach. Such findings demonstrate that for practical purposes, the combined use of an X-band radar and NSWE simulations provides suitable beach-inundation predictions and may represent a useful tool for public authorities dealing with the coastal environment, e.g., for hazard mapping or warning purposes.