Here's apparent vindication of a scary maritime legend. Who here knows much about fluid mechanics? My physics education is a bit patchy. It's humbling to think that the seemingly familiar element of our own planet's oceans - the surface, not the abyssal depths - can still throw up surprises like these freak waves. On the open sea, most of them must go completely unseen and unheard by man. I don't suppose any of you believe you may have seen such a wave with your own eyes? Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
obviously it is giant sea monsters, like you see on old maps. "Two large ships sink every week on average," said Wolfgang Rosenthal, of the GKSS Research Centre in Geesthacht, Germany. What? two per week? thats 104 large ships per year. aren't most big ships oil tankers? there is no way that that many oil spills or that much cargo lost would go unpublished. and say there is at least 100 people working on these ships, i don't really know, but you would think you would need a lot of people to work on them. That's 100,000+ people a year dying in ship sinkings? I don't think that can be right, although the waves do seem possible
They are already doing that. They ride the wake caused by these oil tankers the same way that dolphins & porpoises do......
Freak ocean waves have caused the death of two past friends. There are “freak” waves that can happen when one set of waves are coming into a beach and then another set from an incoming storm start to get propelled over the top s of the first sets. If the right frequency occurs then a wave can be built to 4 times or more the normal height of them as a singular wave. Sometimes double stacking, and even triple stacking the wave heights. The same thing can happen at sea from two differing wave patterns of two differing speeds, one over taking the other. Some times several wave patterns from storms can multiply to incredible heights and in an area where the sea was mildly just rolling earlier. Many beach goers has been warned of “sneaker waves” along the coasts.
Beware of the wave caused by an asteroid impacting in the ocean........Probably the bigest wave you'll ever sea and probably the best ride a surfer can ever hope for. Yob Atta
Thankfully, the majority are not oil tankers: just freighters. But, yes, the amount of cargo lost at sea per year must be fairly staggering, even if routine. Not surprising that insurance is such a big business. Not every lost ship goes down with all hands! Otherwise, who would report the freak waves to researchers?
It is believed a number of tsunamis are caused the sudden release of large quantities of methane hydrates from the seafloor, breaking the surface. Some people think methane hydrates may be the next fossil fuel when oil runs out. http://ethomas.web.wesleyan.edu/ees123/clathrate.htm
The thing that always surprises me is that people call them freak waves. I am no sailor, but ive read enough to realise that they are frequent occurences, its just that they dont always hit ships.
craterchains, you are basically saying that two wave patterns meet and constructivley interfere to make a larger wave... and so on? Makes sense to me Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Later T
Thanks for the link on gas hydrates, Vortexx. Do you think that, if these break down due to global warming, they will add enough methane to the atmosphere for a substantial positive feedback, boosting the warming further?
One should not worry about global warming in a wave thread. Although the mechanics of clathrate gun explosions are poorly understood, it may or may not have much to do with giant waves. We probably need to find some form of resonance to explain those waves. Anyway, talking about clathrate guns, it may totally rewrite the ice age theory but perhaps totally different as Kennett thinks. Although a very strong greenhouse gas, methane is rapidly removed from the atmosphere within some 10-15 years and cannot really contribute significantly to increased greenhouse gas effect. But that's off thread.
