Propagation of weakly nonlinear disturbances of the interface between two layers of fluid

The dynamics of internal waves of small but finite amplitude in a two-layer fluid system bounded by rigid horizontal surfaces at bottom and top is investigated theoretically. For linear disturbances of the fluid interface the authors propose a polynomial approximation of the dispersion relation which has the same asymptotics as the exact formula in the limiting situations of very long and short waves. In the case of three-dimensional, weakly nonlinear disturbances of slowly varying shape (in the coordinate system moving with the wave) an equation like the wave equation is derived. This equation has Stokes solutions coinciding with the well-known results for infinitely deep layers. For fairly long disturbances solitary solutions of the model wave equation which fit the experimental data are determined. Novosibirsk. Translated from Izvestiya Rossiiskoi Akademii Nauk, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No.1, pp. 125–131, January–February, 1994.