NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: Noisy Sea Surface
From: Steven Wepster
Date: 2003 Nov 17, 10:54 +0100
From: Steven Wepster
Date: 2003 Nov 17, 10:54 +0100
I have heard popping-bubbling-clicking sounds two months ago in the Oosterschelde, an inlet quite well known for its sea life, especially crustacea. I was at anchor for one and a half day. The sounds were heard invariably around the time of low water, during less than one hour (maybe half of that). Night and day alike, but only at low water. The sounds were best heard below deck through the hull. I do not clearly remember if they could be heard from deck too. From deck I could see bubbles surfacing all around, not only in the vicinity of the boat. Because the sounds were made during such a short time interval, I do not believe that they were triggered by the pressure excerted by the water on the sea bed. During that short interval the rise and fall of the water is very small compared to the difference between spring and neap tides. I would rather say that they were triggered by the standstill of the tidal current. I have not been a regular visitor of the area for years, so unfortunately I can not say if the phenomenon is regular, seasonal, or infrequent. Steven.