Waves Deconstruction

Waves in film tend to be extreme examples of wind generated waves that defy the laws of physics, and for this simulation I want to push those boundaries as well, as this is a simulation of an ocean, not a pond.

However as a starting point and to make sure that this simulation is grounded in reality, some research on how waves naturally form and how this can be represented in Maya was undertaken. Firstly there are five factors that govern the formation of waves:

• Wind Speed

• Distance of open water the wind has travelled across

• The Width of said area

•  The Time the wind has blown over said area

• The Depth of the water 

With these factors, bigger is better, increasing any of them will result in larger waves. For the following factors; distance, width, time and depth can be controlled easily in Maya by controlling the starting conditions of the body of water / particles being manipulated.

For basic wind simulation with nParticles the nucleus of a nParticle system holds a Gravity & Wind values which could be manipulated to simulate different conditions. For fluid containers the Dynamic Simulation, Self Attraction and Repulsion and Surface functionality could be manipulated to have the desired effect.

I do not know how useful the Gravity & Wind dynamics will be in relation to this particular objective and will test it further this week. If this system is inadequate further tests will be run using nDynamic fields or possibly a scripted effect. I share this concern with the use of the fluid container's functionality, in any case I believe scripting will be needed to enhance / customize the functionality to this scenario.