waves

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A Buoy Noticed a Wave in 2013 That Was 'Remarkable'

Others may have been taller, but this was recorded by the best tool we have

(Newser) - The world's "highest significant wave height as measured by a buoy" was 62.3 feet, located in the (very) high seas between the UK and Iceland, and occurred in 2013, the World Meteorological Organization has confirmed. The wave formed after a strong cold front passed through the remote...

Surfing Amazon's Giant Waves Is a Thing of Past

Man-made influences are being blamed

(Newser) - As the sun crosses the Equator during the fall and spring equinoxes in September and March, strong gravitational and lunar pulls trigger tidal bores around the world as the flow of nearby rivers reverses and the water grows turbulent. Along Brazil’s remote Araguari River in the Amazon, this created...

Whale-Watching Disaster Blamed on Freak Wave

Weather seemed calm, but rogue wave may have doomed Canada's Leviathan II

(Newser) - Canada's Transportation Safety Board thinks it knows how a whale-watching boat sank on Sunday, leaving five Brits dead and an Australian missing: a surprise wave, the Guardian reports. A survivor told one of the rescuers there was "this real big wave coming—bigger than the rest of the...

Man Posing for Photos Along Lake Michigan Drowns

Earl Helmuth, an Amish man, did not know how to swim

(Newser) - On Saturday night a 24-year-old Indiana man posed for photos alongside the woman he was due to marry; it was the last thing the two would do together. Earl Helmuth was swept off a lighthouse pier in Michigan City, Ind., by a wave thought to be at least 7 feet...

Epic Surf Wows California
 Epic Surf Wows California 
Aug 28, 2014 4:11 AM CDT

Epic Surf Wows California

Hurricane Marie's waves pound coast

(Newser) - Southern California is seeing the kind of epic surf usually associated with Hawaii or Tahiti. Beaches are thronged with wave riders, and crowds are coming to watch the action even as seaside communities try to stave off damage from the ocean onslaught. A third day of waves spawned by the...

25-Foot Waves May Hit California

But Hurricane Marie not expected to hit land

(Newser) - A massive hurricane is moving north from Mexico's coast, and while it's not expected to hit land in the US, Southern California can expect some huge and possibly dangerous waves starting today and peaking tomorrow, authorities say. Hurricane Marie is weakening slightly, but some surf spots could see...

Once-Frozen Arctic Sea Now Gets 16-Foot Waves

Which could further contribute to ice melt: study

(Newser) - Good news for Arctic surfers? The Beaufort Sea, part of the Arctic Ocean, was long covered in a perpetual layer of ice; not so anymore. Now, the area has seen waves 16 feet high thanks to warmer temperatures, scientists say in a new study, per National Geographic . The giant waves...

Freak Wave Kills Cruise Ship Passenger

85-year-old dies after wave hits vessel in English Channel

(Newser) - An 85-year-old man on a cruise ship in the English Channel was killed after what the ship's operator calls a "freak wave" smashed into the vessel, reports the BBC . Several others were injured, including a woman who was airlifted off the Marco Polo, operated by Cruise & Maritime...

Scientists Record 800-Foot Undersea Wave

Skyscraper-size waves can take an hour to break: study

(Newser) - Amazing, terrifying, or some combination of both? Scientists have recorded an 800-foot wave breaking at the bottom of the ocean for the first time, Nature World News reports. That's the size of a skyscraper, and these waves can take as long as an hour to break. University of Washington...

Massive Flooding Is the 'Worst Case Scenario'

Rain, high tides, giant waves could drench eastern seaboard

(Newser) - The projected storm surge from Hurricane Sandy is a "worst case scenario" with devastating waves and tides predicted for the highly populated New York City metro area, government forecasters said today. The more they look, the more the experts worry about the water—which usually kills and does more...

25-Foot Waves Pound Chicago
 25-Foot Waves Pound Chicago 
Oct 20, 2011 10:51 AM CDT

25-Foot Waves Pound Chicago

Propelled by winds of up to 60 miles per hour

(Newser) - If you live in Chicago, today is probably a bad day to go sailing. For the second straight day, Lake Michigan is being bombarded by winds gusting at up to 60mph, which are conjuring up waves up to 25 feet high. Wipeout conditions and some low-level flooding are expected along...

Chicagoans Ignore Gale-Force Winds

Some residents ignore barriers along Lake Shore Drive

(Newser) - High winds whipped up waves as big as 16 feet today and temporarily knocked out power for some 32,000 Chicagoans, the Chicago Tribune reports. Only 2,200 lacked power later on, but gale warnings are in effect until 10pm, and authorities have raised barricades along Lake Shore Drive to...

Giant Waves Pound California Coast

Swimmer missing; smugglers' boat crashes

(Newser) - A high surf advisory is in effect until 5pm along the central California coast, as the damaging impact of the huge waves pounding the area comes to light: A body-boarder has gone missing, and a marijuana-smuggling boat crashed on shore, likely a victim of the powerful surf, the AP reports....

The Secrets of 120-Foot Rogue Waves

Susan Casey's new book explores the monsters

(Newser) - There are waves, and then there are waves. Susan Casey tackles the latter in The Wave, a new book that explores the world of rogue waves—individual giants that can measure more than 120 feet tall, damage 100-foot oil rigs, and even sink large ships. Salon talked to her about...

Giant Waves Kill Two Cruise Ship Passengers

Accident occurs near French Mediterranean port

(Newser) - Greek and Cypriot officials say 26-foot waves have crashed into a cruise ship with nearly 2,000 people aboard off France, smashing glass windshields and killing two passengers. Another six people suffered minor injuries. The accident occurred near the French Mediterranean port of Marseilles as the Cypriot-owned Louis Majesty was...

Rogue Waves Rough Up Surfing Spectators

At least 15 people hurt while being swept onto beach

(Newser) - Enormous rogue waves swept over a northern California beach today and injured at least 15 people watching a surfing contest. A handful of spectators were taken to the hospital, some with broken bones. They were watching the renowned Mavericks Surf Contest, held only when the world's top surfers think waves...

Scientist Seeks Rogue Wave Hot Spots

(Newser) - A California scientist says he's closer to predicting the kind of rogue waves that have terrified seamen for centuries, the BBC reports. Rising as high as 6 stories and destroying ships with a single wallop, such waves occur where sand banks and currents force wave energy to focus on a...

Surf's Up for Rover, Too
 Surf's Up for Rover, Too 
SLIDESHOW
Jul 18, 2009 4:38 PM CDT

Surf's Up for Rover, Too

Pooches put down the bone and ride the waves

(Newser) - See spot run—not to catch a Frisbee, but to ride waves on a California beach. Surfing pooches are the latest trend in Southern California, where sunny skies and golden beaches gave birth to '60s surf culture, NPR reports. Dogs can take surfing classes and even enter surfing competitions. “...

Fargo Braces for Snow as Floods Ease

Winter weather could cause waves to batter sandbag levees

(Newser) - Just as the Red River began retreating from Fargo's hastily fortified levees, the city's tired residents stared down a winter storm today that's expected to bring up to 14 inches of snow and wind-whipped waves that could worsen the flooding, the AP reports. Engineers aren't worried about the snowfall, but...

Killer Currents Claim 4 NYC Swimmers

(Newser) - Four swimmers have drowned, three are missing, and at least three more have been rescued in two days of deadly ocean currents at Long Island and New York City beaches. Eight-foot waves rocked the area, causing rough seas and a strong rip current. One police lieutenant told the AP he...

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