The 170 Metre Wave No One Can See

Some of the biggest waves on Earth are invisible — up to 170 metres tall, taller than a 50-storey tower. And the ship sailing above feels nothing. They form in the Luzon Strait between Taiwan and the Philippines. Twice a day, the tide pushes the ocean over two underwater ridges and drags down the thermocline — the sharp boundary between warm, light water on top and cold, heavy water below. When the tide eases, that dip is released and steepens into a train of giant internal waves that travel hundreds of kilometres west across the South China Sea. At the surface the sea rises by less than an inch, but radar satellites can see them from space as bright bands of ripples. When they hit the continental slope, they break, churn the ocean and lift cold, nutrient-rich water up to the coral reefs. #shorts #ocean #internalwaves #science #physics #oceanography #sea