National Weather Service Text Product Display

Public Information Statement
Issued by NWS Portland, ME
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NOUS41 KGYX 212219
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PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT...NATIONAL SAFE BOATING WEEK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAY ME
615 PM EDT TUE MAY 21 2013

...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AND NERACOOS (NORTHEASTERN REGIONAL
ASSOCIATION OF COASTAL OCEAN OBSERVING SYSTEMS) CONTINUES TO OBSERVE
MAY 18TH THROUGH 24TH AS NATIONAL SAFE BOATING WEEK...

...WIND AND WAVES...

THE FOLLOWING IS A SAFE BOATING MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL SAFE
BOATING COUNCIL AND THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE...REMINDING YOU
THAT NATIONAL SAFE BOATING WEEK IS MAY 18TH THROUGH MAY 24TH.

NATIONAL STATISTICS IN 2011 INDICATED THAT 377 BOATS WENT DOWN IN
CALM SEAS NATIONALLY.  HOWEVER...287 CRAFTS ALSO SUNK UNDER
CHOPPY...ROUCH OR VERY ROUGH CONDITIONS DURING THIS PERIOD.

WIND AND WAVES AFFECT ALL TYPES OF BOATS SO IT IS IMPORTANT ALL
BOATERS KNOW SOME BASIC FACTS ABOUT WINDS AND WAVES. WIND OVER WATER
IS USUALLY STRONGER THAN OVER NEARBY LAND. WIND IS THE MAIN FACTOR
IN WAVE DEVELOPMENT AND IN GENERAL...THE STRONGER THE WIND...THE
LARGER THE WAVES.

INDIVIDUAL WAVES ARE MEASURED FROM TROUGH TO CREST. SEAS ARE THE
COMBINATION OF BOTH LOCALLY GENERATED WIND WAVES AND DISTANTLY
GENERATED SWELL WAVES AND ARE EXPRESSED IN THE TERMS OF THE
SIGNIFICANT-WAVE-HEIGHT...THE MEAN OR AVERAGE HEIGHT OF THE HIGHEST
ONE THIRD OF THE WAVES. IT APPROXIMATES THE VALUE AN EXPERIENCED
OBSERVER WOULD REPORT IF VISUALLY ESTIMATING SEA HEIGHT. WHEN
EXPRESSED AS A RANGE (FOR EXAMPLE...SEAS 3 TO 5 FT)...THIS INDICATES
A DEGREE OF UNCERTAINTY IN THE FORECAST AND/OR EXPECTED CHANGING
CONDITIONS. THE DANGER PRESENTED TO A VESSEL IS A FUNCTION OF WAVE
STEEPNESS AS WELL AS WAVE HEIGHT AND IS UNIQUE TO EACH VESSEL. IN
GENERAL FOR SMALL VESSELS...FOR A GIVEN WAVE HEIGHT THE DANGER
INCREASES AS THE WAVE PERIOD DECREASES.

"THE SEVENTH WAVE OF THE SEVENTH SET"...AN OLD FISHERMAN`S TALE?
PERHAPS...BUT IT DOES SERVE TO HIGHLIGHT THAT WAVE AND SURF
CONDITIONS ARE NOT ALWAYS CONSTANT. IN OPEN WATERS...THE OCCASIONAL
WAVE MAY BE TWICE THAT OF THE SURROUNDING SEA. THERE ARE OCCASIONAL
REPORTS OF "ROGUE" WAVES OF AN EVEN GREATER RATIO. NEAR
SHORE...WAVES ARE EVEN LESS PREDICTABLE. SO-CALLED "SNEAKER WAVES"
CAN GRAB THE UNWARY WHO VENTURE TOO CLOSE TO THE UNPREDICTABLE SEA.
MARINERS MAY BE DRAWN TOO CLOSE TO THE SURF ZONE DURING PERIODS OF
RELATIVE CALM. PROCEED CAUTIOUSLY AND ALWAYS BE WARY OF THIS NOT
UNCOMMON PHENOMENON...ESPECIALLY IN AREAS WHERE BREAKING SURF IS
KNOWN TO OCCUR OR APPEARS LIKELY.

WINDS AND WAVES CAN CHANGE QUICKLY IN SPEED...DIRECTION AND
STEEPNESS SO IT IS IMPORTANT YOU INCLUDE A MARINE FORECAST IN YOUR
PREPARATIONS FOR BOATING.

THIS MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL SAFE BOATING COUNCIL WAS FORWARDED TO
YOU BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AND THE NORTHEAST REGIONAL OCEAN
OBSERVING SYSTEM...NERACOOS.
$$

NNNN
National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office
