031219

0835 - It is quite interesting now. The weather really picked up last night. On the Beaufort Scale, which is how they measure such things, the First Mate, Emil, says this is probably a Seven. Here's the table I snagged from Encarta 2004:

The Beaufort Scale is a system of recording wind velocity (speed) devised in 1806 by Francis Beaufort (1774–1857). It is a numerical scale ranging from 0 for calm to 12 for a hurricane. Sailors and forecasters use the Beaufort Wind Scale as a standardized way to rate wind speed. The scale, when originally drawn up, categorized wind not by its speed but by its observable effects. Various attempts have been made since to apply precise speeds to the Beaufort ratings.

Beaufort
Scale

Wind
km/hr

Speed
mph

Effects on Land

Effects on Water

0	below 1	below 1	Smoke rises straight up; tree leaves without perceptible motion	Sea flat and mirrorlike
1	1 - 6	1 - 3	Rising smoke drifts; tree leaves barely move	Ripples without foam on crests appear
2	7 - 12	4 - 7	Leaves rustle slightly; wind felt on face	Small wavelets form, with short but pronounced crests that do not break
3	13 - 19	8 - 12	Leaves and twigs move; loose paper and dust raised from ground	Large wavelets with breaking crests form; occasional white foam crests
4	20 - 30	13 -18	Small branches move; wind raises dust and paper	Small waves form; white foam at crests more frequent
5	31 - 39	19 - 24	Small trees sway and large branches in motion; dust clouds raised	Moderate waves occur, with foaming crests and possible spray
6	40 - 50	25 - 31	Large branches move continuously; wind whistles; umbrellas difficult to use	Large waves form, with extensive white foam crests
7	51 - 62	32 - 38	Whole trees in motion; walking difficult	Sea heaps; white foam blows in streaks from breaking waves
8	63 - 74	39 - 46	Tree twigs break; walking progress slow	Moderately high waves form, well-marked streaks of foam blow with wind
9	75 - 87	47 - 54	Slight structural damage	High waves form, with dense streaks of foam
10	88 - 102	55 - 63	Exposed trees uprooted; heavy structural damage	Very high waves with long overhanging crests occur; great patches of foam blows in dense white streaks
11	103 - 117	64 - 72	Widespread damage	Exceptionally high waves form; sea covered with long white patches of foam; wave crests blown into froth
12	above 118	above 73	Severe damage and destruction	Exceptionally high waves form; air filled with foam and spray; sea completely white
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

At about 0630, I got up. The bunk had really been rocking and rolling. It felt good to lie there warm under the covers and to feel the ship moving and shaking. But, I wanted to get up and to see what was going on.

The sky is only about half cloudy and it doesn't look bad. It is the sea and wind which are both running high. Up on the bridge, I found both the Chief Engineer, Antoni, and the First Mate, Emil. We talked about the weather and Emil told me I was forbidden to go to the bow in such weather.

Later, as I was leaving, he also told me that I must use the internal stairwells to move between decks rather than to go outside and use the external stairways. I agreed, of course. They are much more conservative here than they were on the Russian ship. The things we did there, going ashore on Zodiacs through the surf, boarding the Zodiacs from the gangway as the seas rose and fell six and eight feet - these things truly had some danger to them. But, it is all fine. This is a working commercial ship and their concerns are valid though different.

0945 - Pretty cool up on the bridge. I shot stills and 35 sec movie there of the bridge and the seas outside. The Captain allowed me to go out on the flying bridge on the sides and photograph. The wind was blowing so hard it was hard to keep my eyes open from the watering.

The Second Mate, Kyaw Min Oo, whose watch it is now, showed me the weather map. There's an area of low pressure about 200 miles off our port bow. It is what is causing all this disturbance. It will likely keep up for most of the day.

Most of the big swells are coming from nearly straight ahead (as are the 40-50 mile an hour winds). When the ship's rising and falling gets synchronized with the swells, it can raise the ship's bow really high and then drop it low.

If, on the strong drop, the sea just happens to come then in a big swell, the bow will nearly bury itself in the sea and the entire ship will shudder as it absorbs the blow from the sea. I've taken a number of shots but I haven't fully captured one of these yet. Whew, there's some big ones happening just now as I'm typing. My chair is sliding on the carpet a bit.

I asked the Second Mate if the propeller will rise out of the weather in this weather. He said that the swells are not big enough for that to happen yet. He also said that when it happens, you will know it because there's a very strong vibration as the engine and the prop suddenly run free without the resistance of the sea.

I filled out my customs forms for New Zealand a bit ago. Tomorrow night about 2200 we will arrive unless this storm delays us.

I should be programming but it is hard to not want to run outside and watch all the commotion. Today, we ate breakfast in the conference room which is across the passageway from the Officer's Mess. The table is oriented fore to aft there and all the chairs are tied to the floor so it is safer to prevent food from flying around and the chairs from falling over.

1110 - Just back in from another session up on the bridge. I stood outside on the port side flying bridge for a long time watching and filming.

I think/hope that I got some great shots. I know there was one film sequence where the bow really buried itself. beautiful. I can't wait until I get into a cyber-cafe in NZ and download a copy of QuickTime so I can watch these things on my laptop.

1945 - At 1720, I dropped two quarters over the side. We were at approximately 32.55S and 177.33W which meant that we were directly above the Kermadec Trench which runs north east of New Zealand's North Island. Not far from our location was the deepest part of the trench at 32,000 feet plus. Just for fun, I did some calculations. Assuming that the coins will fall through the water at a rate of 5 seconds per 10 feet, it is going to take over four hours before they strike the bottom. The water here is deeper than Mt. Everest is high. Unless a fish gobbles them on their way down and is later caught, I don't think anyone on Earth will ever see those coins again.

We arrive in Tauranga tomorrow at 1600 if we're on schedule. We might be a bit later with the slow down from today's storm (which is abating now). I'm going to go ashore and call Sharon and then I'm going to stay onboard overnight and pack and then Sunday morning I'm off for Auckland and my car rental.