Abnormally large waves.

[EternalOptimist]

Isn't that part of the ocean called "France"?

It was in the med, but reported as NE of Spain.

I think they meant NE of Barcelona, in the med.

bad reporting, because , as RC says, NE of Spain is in France, or the Bay of Biscay at least

[Babbage]

In the north sea during the early 80's we had 1" of waves at times during the summer and the waves would break over railings at about 65 foot above mean sea level during the winter...

[RichardCranium]

Rereading the article, the ship was off the Northeast of Spain.

Isn't that part of the ocean called "France"?

[Menelaus]

yeah
and it was "Blueprint for Disaster" not "seconds from..."

Yup. 44 dead. Largest UK ship ever sunk.

EDIT: sister ship sunk in Bantry Bay in Oireland
http://www.divesitedirectory.co.uk/d...on_bridge.html

[Spacecadet]

MV Derbyshire, I think?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Derbyshire

yeah
and it was "Blueprint for Disaster" not "seconds from..."

[Menelaus]

there was a seconds from disaster program about a ship that sank possibly because of a freak wave

MV Derbyshire, I think?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Derbyshire

[Spacecadet]

Found it, was actually a Horizon program in 2000.

Mega-Tsunami

there was a seconds from disaster program about a ship that sank possibly because of a freak wave

[DaveB]

Found it, was actually a Horizon program in 2000.

Mega-Tsunami

[DaveB]

It'd be an interesting academic exercise to work out how big it'd be when it gets to the eastern seaboard - with water depths across the Atlantic wave amplitude would be quite low but by the time it got into shallow waters then it'd be mahoosive

There was a program about on one of the "science" type channels ( discovery or somesuch ) a couple of years ago. There has been a fair bit of work done on predicting just how much damage it would do.

Cant find a reference to it atm though.

[Menelaus]

Fortunately the alignment of the islands mean it will head for the East Coast USA rather than Europe.

It'd be an interesting academic exercise to work out how big it'd be when it gets to the eastern seaboard - with water depths across the Atlantic wave amplitude would be quite low but by the time it got into shallow waters then it'd be mahoosive

[DaveB]

Now that really is a rogue wave.

Fortunately the alignment of the islands mean it will head for the East Coast USA rather than Europe.

[DaveB]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8548547.stm

26 feet is abnormally large?

I suppose it is the millpond that they call the Med.

It is on the open ocean, unless the weather is extremly bad, and even then thats big. This site has a nice little wave height forcast tool that shows the sort of heights you can expect and it;s easy to see how they follow weather patterns.

Edit :

Here's one for the Med.

[Mich the Tester]

Good job there was a big mother of a ship in the way to stop them.

[zeitghost]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8548547.stm

26 feet is abnormally large?

I suppose it is the millpond that they call the Med.