The Colour of Water
The colour of water is determined by: A) What’s under it. B) What’s in it. C) What’s on it. D) And by light levels and…
Tag: waves
How to Spot a Dangerous Sandbank or Reef
How to spot a dangerous sandbank or reef: Note the change in colour and the breaking waves. At night only the sound of the breakers…
What is Fetch?
The definition of the word ‘fetch’ is simple: The distance that wind travels over open water. But why do we need to know that? Spend…
Shark Teeth and Currents
A sample of fossil sharks’ teeth collected on Casey Key and Venice beach, Florida, by Mark Evans. — I have written about the way sea…
The Difference Between Waves and Swell
One of the commonest questions ocean watchers ask is: What is the difference between waves and swell? The concise answer is: “Swell is best thought…
The Tombolo
A tombolo is a thin strip of sand or shingle that is formed by wave action around an island. The new thin strip of…
The Marine Quarterly
Congratulations to Sam LLewellyn on the launch of The Marine Quarterly. A more handsome nautical vessel would be hard to find. (The Marine Quarterly that…
Humboldt and Flying Fish
I’m doing some research at the moment and came across this line, written by the German explorer Alexander von Humboldt, about flying fish: ‘Like swallows…
Archirondel Tower
I have just spent a couple of nights living in the beautiful, but spartan, Archirondel Tower, a Martello tower on the east coast of Jersey…
Waves of Confusion
This morning, as our Land Rover rolled onto the Brittany ferry, or MV Bretagne as she likes to be called, I had a cunning plan.…