Examining wind stress and wind waves in the presence of swell

A case study of the air-sea drag coefficient as measured off the coast of North Carolina using a low-flying aircraft suggests that the presence of following wind swell was associated with low drag values. Shorter wave slope variance at the m and cm-scale was also depressed for these moderate wind cases. The results here are not conclusive but are consistent with recent results showing some impact of the swell and that following-wind swell is associated with the lowest drag coefficient levels.