text: what is a sea wave and how is it made?   ocean surface waves are surface waves which occur at the surface of an ocean. they are mechanical waves that propagate along the interface between water and air; the restoring force is provided by gravity, and so they are often referred to as surface gravity waves. as the wind blows, pressure and friction forces perturb the equilibrium of the ocean surface. these forces transfer energy from the air to the water, forming waves. in the case of monochromatic linear plane waves in deep water, particles near the surface move in circular paths, making ocean surface waves a combination of longitudinal (back and forth) and transverse (up and down) wave motions. when waves propagate in shallow water, (where the depth is less than half the wavelength) the particle trajectories are compressed into ellipses. as the wave amplitude (height) increases, the particle paths no longer form closed orbits; rather, after the passage of each crest, particles are displaced a little forward from their previous positions, a phenomenon known as stokes drift. a good illustration of the wave motion is given by *prof. robert dalrymple java applet.