"K. Smith" wrote in message
...
basskisser wrote:
"K. Smith" wrote in message
...

Short Wave Sportfishing wrote:

On Tue, 16 Mar 2004 23:08:02 +1100, "K. Smith"
wrote:



Calif Bill wrote:


http://tv-antenna.com/heavy-seas/




Hmmm contrary view has to be put & as always only too happy to
discuss
it:-)

Thanks for the pics though, they prove yet again that "huge" waves in
open water are the stuff of over active imaginations


Ummmmm....ok, I'll bite.

Why?

Look at the pics, some show a wave seeming to be breaking "onto" the
boat?? whereas in reality the boat is ploughing "through" & in part
creating the wave, waves don't break like that in open water until they
get disturbed by the proximity of the ship's displacement.


what??? IF the boat IS plowing through the wave, and the ship's
freeboard is 30', then the wave is higher than that. If it weren't the
ship wouldn't plow through it.

No the boat has huge momentum via it's mass & speed, even at slow
speeds, it's pitching up & down regardless. The bow is being pushed down
via the ship's own motion. Once the boat has some pitch motion
established even a small wave will "look" like it's breaking over the
deck, but the boat is actually diving downwards, bow first.

At sea in heavy weather you're usually running (got not much choice on
small yachts:-)) & invariably someone comes up from below & looks astern
only to see the mythical huge wave standing up about to break upon the
boat, what this person is actually looking at is down the back of the
wave that just past under the boat, through the trough then up the steep
face of the next approaching wave, however having no reference other
than the confusion of their own balance he/she in all honesty "sees'
that all as all up & the face of an approaching huge wave.


Jeez, it can't be any more simple, if you are standing on a ship's
deck, and there is 30' between you and the water, and the wave breaks
over you, then the wave has to be greater than 30', or it could not
possibly break over you.

On a very calm day even a modest patrol boat can throw green water over
the deck if driven hard into a slight swell.

The boat acts like a sea wall & as you might know waves bounce up over
sea walls much higher than the surrounding wave height.

The pictures are not a testament to big waves but to how easy it is to
be deceived when our normal established references (what's up & what's
down) are taken away.

K


Well, to quote my school roommate. There was green water rolling down the
deck of the ship. The ship was The CV Bonne Hoome Richard. And it is a
smaller aircraft carrier. The DD and DE's were completely underwater at
times. This during a typhoon off the Philipines. Which says to me they
were a lot bigger than 30' waves. Maybe you ought to go see a large surfing
break. Our local big break Mavericks will produce greater than 60' at good
swell times.
Bill