NASBLA Public Library

In 2020, The University of Minnesota (UMN), St. Anthony Falls Laboratory (SAFL) launched a research program titled “Healthy Waters Initiative” with a mission of establishing multi-year research efforts focused on issues that have the potential to adversely affect Minnesota lakes and rivers. The first research topic under this initiative was focused on characterizing boat-generated surface waves, specifically the divergent waves generated by powerboats, including wakeboats. The research output was a report titled “A Field Study of Maximum Wave Height, Total Wave Energy, and Maximum Wave Power Produced by Four Recreational Boats on a Freshwater Lake” that was published in February 2022. Since its publication it has been downloaded over 17,000 times and shared many more, which is a testament to the importance of this research topic. This led to the second research topic reported here, focused on characterizing the hydrodynamic phenomena that occur beneath the water surface as a powerboat moves about, and their potential impacts to the aquatic environment. With funding secured through a crowdfunding campaign and the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund (ENRTF), fieldwork started in the fall of 2022, with a second fieldwork campaign completed in the fall of 2023.