13 results found.
... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 84: Nov-Dec 1992 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Solitary Waves Unlike the well-known long trains of ocean swells that sweep past ship and swimmer with great regularity, solitary waves move "in splendid isolation, steadfastly holding their shape." Spacecraft photos have revealed curious striations in the Andaman Sea near Thailand. They are presumed to be examples of solitary waves. The Andaman waves extend for many miles and travel very slowly -- less than 10 kilometers per hour. They propagate along the boundary between the layer of warm surface water and the great mass of cooler water below. The amplitude of the downwardly pointing wave troughs of warm water along this interface may penetrate as far as 100 meters into the cold water below. (Herman, Russell; "Solitary Waves," American Scientist, 80:350, 1992.) Comment. Much more about these solitary waves and the other unusual waves mentioned above may be found in section GHW in our catalog: Earthquakes, Tides, Unidentified Sounds . The prevailing explanation for most oceanic solitary waves (often called "solitons") is that they are generated when tidal surges encounter underwater continental shelves or other obstructions. The above-mentioned catalog volume is described at: here . From Science Frontiers #84, NOV-DEC 1992 . 1992-2000 William R. Corliss ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 165 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf084/sf084g97.htm
... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 137: SEP-OCT 2001 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects The Ship-swallowers It's happened hundreds of times, and thousands of sailors have lost their lives. The killers are giant, usually solitary, waves that seem to come out of nowhere. These monster walls of water appear in seas that are rough but not fearfully so. Suddenly. a ship will find itself in a deep trough. Then conies a wall of water. 50-100 feet high. (34 meters is the biggest reliable measurement.) The vessel is flooded, perhaps its back is broken. It sinks like a rock without even sending a distress signal. Another ship has been devoured by a rogue wave. Giant solitary waves are usually preceded by deep troughs. as seen in this sketch of a vessel in the notorious A gulhas Current off the coast of South Africa. (From: Earthquakes. Tides....) Just between 1969 and 1994. 60 supercarriers were lost due to sudden flooding. Of this number, 22 were apparently swallowed by rogue waves. The rogue waves appear unexpectedly. They dwarf all surrounding waves. For a long time, the rogues were said to be just chance additions of two smaller waves. But they are too big and occur too frequently to be statistical flukes. In addition, statiticians have trouble in accounting for the fabled and feared "three sisters" -- three massive waves in succession. Consequently, scientists have retreated to a now-familiar ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 26 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf137/sf137p12.htm
... Warwick, R.W ., et al; "Hurricane 'Luis', the Queen Elizabeth 2 and a Rogue Wave," Marine Observer, 66:134, 1996) Comments. Even though these so-called "rogue waves" sometimes appear under calm conditions, the stock explanation for them involves the chance addition of two smaller waves from intersecting wave trains. Recently, B. Fornberg and B.S . White have taken a different tack: "Using a mathematical model, they demonstrate that ocean currents or large fields of random eddies and vortices can sporadically concentrate a steady ocean swell to create unusually large waves. The current or eddy field acts like an optical lens to focus the wave action..." Maybe so, but this article admits at the outset that solitary rogue waves may occur in calm seas. (Peterson, I.; "Rough Math: Focussing on Rogue Waves at Sea," Science News, 150:325, 1996) Reference. Large solitary waves are rather common. See GHW1 in our Catalog: Earthquakes, Tides. Ordering information can be found here . From Science Frontiers #109, JAN-FEB 1997 . 1997-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 81: May-Jun 1992 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Eusocial Beetles The best-known eusocial animals are the ants, termites, and naked mole rats. As As biological observations accumulate, the phenomenon is being found elsewhere in the animal kingdom. The following quotation extends eusociality to the beetles and (in case you wondered) defines "eusociality": "The weevil Austroplatypus incompertus lives in galleries in the heartwood of Eucalyptus trees. Colonies are initiated by solitary fertilized females and, when mature, manifest the three phenomena which characterize eusociality: overlapping generations, cooperative brood care and division into reproductive and sterile (unfertilized) castes. Each colony contains one fertilized and five or so unfertilized adult females, the job of the second group being to deal with predators and to extend and maintain the galleries." (Anonymous; "Sociable Beetles," Nature, 356:111, 1992.) Comment. Eusociality is somewhat of a puzzle in evolutionary theory because one must ask how the phenomenon arises, when it requires some individuals to forswear reproduction and thus give up the chance to pass their genes directly on to progeny. Explanations of such extreme altruism generally state that the nonbreeders are really helping to pass some (or even all) of their genes on by supporting the colony, for they are usually closely related to the breeding female. From Science Frontiers #81, MAY-JUN 1992 . 1992-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... , he again saw the strange tracks heading across the slope to a small bush. "Behind the bush stood an erect entity over 6 feet tall. The figure, of general human proportions and stance, remained immobile, seemingly looking down the slope. 'The head was large and squarish, and the whole body appeared to be covered with dark hair.'" Wooldridge quickly snapped several photographs. He then advanced to with-in 500 feet of the entity and took more pictures. After 45 minutes of observa tion, Wooldridge decided to continue his journey. When asked why he did not approach the figure to force it to move or react, he stated that he got as close as he felt it was safe, being concerned about snow stability, the creature itself, and his solitary situation. (Anonymous; "First Yeti Photos Spark Renewed Interest," ISC Newsletter, 5:1 , Winter 1986.) Comment. The photos and sketch drawn under Wooldridge's guidance certainly do show a human-like creature. The maddening aspect of this whole business is the near motionlessness of the entity. If only it had moved significantly during the picture-taking. Instead of a smoking gun, we have just smoke; that is, enticing but still unconvincing data. Perhaps the full report, soon to appear in the journal Cryptozoology, will bolster the case for the yeti. Reference. The Yeti, Sasquatch, and other putative hominids are cataloged under BHU in Biological Anomalies: Humans III. Details on this book here . From Science Frontiers #51, MAY ...
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... of breaking waves, 'walls of white water,' pass a vessel. The bands are sometimes visible from aircraft, on ships' radar and are observed from satellites. In the Bay of Biscay 'boils' have been reported on the sea surface in the calm zones, and appear to be related to pulses of nutrients from the thermocline." These surface phenomena are truly delightful and almost always the consequence of internal waves interacting with the surface. The great bulk of the referenced report is concerned with sonar observations of internal waves and their effects along the coast of Scotland. (Thorpe, S.A ., et al; "Internal Waves and Whitecaps," Nature, 330:740, 1987.) Comment. For some remarkable accounts of wave packets, as well as solitary waves, see category GHW in Earthquakes, Tides, Unidentified Sounds. This book is described here . On March 28, 1964, in the Indian Ocean, the R.R .S . Discovery encountered five bands of breaking waves in an otherwise nearly calm sea. Wave heights were about 2 feet. There was no wind change when the waves passed. (Category GHW2 in Earthquakes, Tides, etc). From Science Frontiers #56, MAR-APR 1988 . 1988-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 77: Sep-Oct 1991 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Supernova Theory Exploded What happens when two white dwarf stars in close orbit finally fall into one another? Theory says you get a colossal explosion called a Type-I supernova. But this hypothesis is in trouble because a recent survey of white dwarfs revealed absolutely no double white dwarfs in a sampe of 25 from the Milky Way. Even if a few pairs are eventually found, they do not appear to be numerous enough to account for the rate at which supernovas are observed. (Crosswell, Ken; "Supernova Theory Exploded by Solitary White Dwarfs," New Scientist, p. 23, March 23, 1991.) From Science Frontiers #77, SEP-OCT 1991 . 1991-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... waves. Now, a consensus is emerging that at least two other factors are important: seabed topography and ocean currents. To illustrate, perhaps the most dangerous stretch of water in the world lies off southeast Africa, where the fast (8 feet/second) Agulhas Current often runs into storm waves surging up from Antarctica. The African continental shelf is so shaped that it funnels the current directly into the storm waves. Immense, steep-fronted waves have broken many a ship here. In sum, the old statistical theory about the origin of rogue waves has been jettisoned, but a new approach is still in the formative stages. (Brown, Joseph; "Rogue Waves," Discover, 10:47, April 1989.) Comment. But can any theory explain giant, solitary waves on calm seas. For more on this subject, see GHW in Earthquakes, Tides, Unidentified Sounds. To order this book, visit: here . From Science Frontiers #66, NOV-DEC 1989 . 1989-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... than our foremost track -- 85 ft above the water. As this wave approached from a direction 90 degrees different from the normal sea and wind, which had been northerly for a few days previously, I put its existence down to a submarine earthquake in the mid-Atlantic ridge. Certainly it appeared so much different from the normal wind-generated sea, of which I have seen thousands. There was no crest, nor white streaks, a nearly vertical front and quite fast approach." (Cameron, T. Wilson; "Treachery of Freak Wave," Marine Observer, 55:202, 1985.) Comment. Earthquake generated waves or tsunamis are hardly noticeable in deep water. Only when they approach shallow water and the shore do they crest dangerously. Reference. Giant solitary waves are covered in category GHW1 in our catalog: Earthquakes, Tides. Ordering information at: here . From Science Frontiers #48, NOV-DEC 1986 . 1986-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... a wave. "It was about 10 minutes after the first sighting that the vessel passed over the wave, which was approximately 4 m [13 feet] high, and she heeled 5 to port while the autopilot deviated 3 off course. At the time of the event, there was a low swell of 1.0 m from 320 and the sea was 0.5 m from 360 . The current was estimated to be 2.5 knots running to the west." (Talbot, A.P .; "Unusual Wave," Marine Observer, 69:10, 1999.) Comment. The wave could not have been a tsunami because it was travelling too slowly. Tsunamis travel at jet speed and are rarely visible on the deep ocean. Since the wave was solitary and four times the height of the gentle swells, it is unlikely that it was a chance combination of the swells. Most likely it was a surface manifestation of an internal wave that had been reflected from an undersea obstacle like the continental shelf. From Science Frontiers #122, MAR-APR 1999 . 1999-2000 William R. Corliss ...
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... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 84: Nov-Dec 1992 Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues Last Issue Next Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Contents Archaeology THE "AMERICA BEFORE COLUMBUS" American pygmies Astronomy Galactic shell game Quasar redshift clusters and (even worse) multiple redshifts Biology It came from within Odd growths found on satellite Cat**cats The hunt for the magnetoreceptor Geology A PERMIAN POLAR FOREST The orbiting mountains below Geophysics Mysterious smoke in sri lanka ROCKET LIGHTNING PHOTOGRAPHED FROM SPACE The florida rogue wave Current treads in the north pacific Solitary waves Atlantic waves getting bigger Psychology Psichotomy THE WOMAN WHO COULDN'T DESCRIBE ...
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... (the Pogonip) * Conical hail * Gelatinous meteors * Point rainfall * Unusual incendiary phenomena * Solar activity and thunderstorms * Tornados and their association with electricity * Multiwalled waterspouts * Explosive onset of whirlwinds * Dry fogs and dust fogs * Effect of the moon on rainfall * Ozone in hurricanes * Ice falls (hydrometeors) Comments from reviews: ". .. can be recommended to every one who realizes that not everything in science has been properly explained", Weather 202 pages, hardcover, $16.95, 40 Illustrations, 5 indexes, 1983. 745 references, LC 82-63156, ISBN 915554-10-0 , 7x10 format. Earthquakes, Tides, Unidentified Sounds: A Catalog of Geophysical Anomalies Sorry: Out of Print. No longer available. Quakes and monster, solitary waves and natural detonations; these are the consequences of solids, liquids, and gases in motion. In our modern technological cocoon, we are hardly aware of this rich spectrum of natural phenomena. [Picture caption: Sand craters created by earthquakes] Typical subjects covered: Periodic wells and blowing caves * Sun-dominated tides * Immense, solitary waves * Animal activity prior to earthquakes * Earthquake geographic anomalies * Earthquake electricity * The sound of the aurora * Musical sounds in nature * Mysterious detonations * Anomalous echos * Slicks and calms on water surfaces * Periodicities of earthquakes * The vibrations of waterfalls * Unusual barometric disturbances Comments from reviews: ". .. surprisingly interesting reading", Nature 220 pages, photocopied edition, $16.95p, 32 illustrations, 5 indexes, 1983. ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 11 - 10 Oct 2021 - URL: /sourcebk.htm
... Precursors Hydrothermal Explosions Effect of Earthquakes upon Geyser Activity GHS THE BEWILDERING VARIETY OF TIDES GHS1 Sun-Dominated Tides GHS2 Sea and Lake Seiches... GHS3 Spectacular Tidal Bores GHS4 Diurnal, Triple, and Quadruple Tides GHS5 Long-Period Tides of Unexpected Strengths GHS6 Tides That Precede the Moon Extraordinary Tsunamis Tsunami Cycles GHT OCEAN TURBULENCE AND CIRCULATION PHENOMENA GHT1 Extraordinary Deep Circulation Events GHT2 Sonar-Detected Subsurface Oceanic Structures GHT3 Nonvolcanic Underwater Eruptions GHT4 Anomalous El Ninos GHT5 The Guinea Tide GHT6 Energy Transfer to Hurricanes GHT7 Oceanic Rings and Eddies GHT8 Large-Scale Oceanic Chemical Anomalies Deep-Sea Storms Curious Drifts Gas-Hydrate Blowouts Great Whirlpools and Vortices The Gibraltar Dam Oceanic Megaplumes Gulf-Stream Reversal Oceanic Dead Zones Organized Structures in Bubble Clouds North Atlantic Oscillations El Ninos Correlated with Seismicity GHW REMARKABLE WAVE PHENOMENA GHW1 Unexplained Solitary Waves GHW2 Periodic Bands of Waves GHW3 Sudden, Unexpected Onset of High Surf GHW4 Downstream Progressive Waves in Rivers Increasing Heights of North Atlantic Waves GI INCENDIARY PHENOMENA GIC CYCLIC FIRES Forest-Fire Cycles GIS SUPPOSED SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION Unexplained Fires GIW REMARKABLE FIRE STORMS The Peshtigo Horror GL LUMINOUS PHENOMENA GLA AURORA-LIKE PHENOMENA GLA1 Auroral Pillars: Natural Searchlight beams GLA2 Sky-Spanning Auroral Arches GLA3 Auroral Meteors: Moving Luminous Patches and Bands GLA4 Low-Level Auroras GLA5 The Odor of the Aurora GLA6 Artificial Low-Level Auroras GLA7 Geographically Displaced Auroras GLA8 Auroras with Unusual Geometries GLA9 Auroras Correlated with Thunderstorms GLA10 Auroras Correlated with Earthquakes GLA11 Auroras Correlated with Meteors GLA12 Close Relationship between Aurora Displays and Clouds GLA13 Glowing Night Skies GLA14 Transient Sky Brightenings GLA15 Bright, Luminous Patches on the Horizon GLA16 Weather or Storm Lights ...
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