On Wed, 14 Sep 2005 23:20:23 +0200, Wijke wrote in


Of course I'm not familair with the coast line near Eastbourne nor northern
Cornwall; but is it a bad thought this long wave swell is more obvious in
deep water along the British coastline than the far more shallow North Sea
coasts of Holland and Belgium, with its sandbanks? A swell like this would
disappear in the wide surf. Apart from that a swell coming from the south;
flowing through the Channel and the street of Dover, it would spread out
into the North Sea, losing lots of its amplitude??

I think you are probably correct, Wijke. Big swell waves can arrive at
times of no local wind or waves and would be best seen on coasts exposed to
the long Atlantic sea fetch. Once they pass through the Straits of Dover,
their amplitude would diminish as the waves fan out in many directions.
Add to that the distortions caused by such features as you mention and they
would soon lose the identity they had conserved over 1000s of miles.


--
Mike 55.13°N 6.69°W Coleraine posted to uk.sci.weather 14/09/2005 21:47:46 UTC