Triggering rogue waves in opposing currents

Abstract: We show that rogue waves can be triggered naturally when a stable wave train enters a region of an opposing current flow. We demonstrate that the maximum amplitude of the rogue wave depends on the ratio between the current velocity, $ U_0 $, and the wave group velocity, $ c_g $. We also reveal that an opposing current can force the development of rogue waves in random wave fields, resulting in a substantial change of the statistical properties of the surface elevation. The present results can be directly adopted in any field of physics in which the focusing Nonlinear Schrodinger equation with non constant coefficient is applicable. In particular, nonlinear optics laboratory experiments are natural candidates for verifying experimentally our results.