Posted by Scott McWilliam on April 22, 19100 at 22:51:57:
In Reply to: How far can you see over water from a ship? posted by Ken Fagerman on April 21, 19100 at 21:31:08:
Well kind of sort of maybe . . .
It is a fun question and I can not resist;b there have been a couple of good answers but . . .
The trick is the earth's curvature so there are two variables ;one has been pointed out how high are the observers eyes above the water, the second is how high is the shore line? If you have a mountain you can see it much farther away than a low lying beach.
Finaly, there is one othe variable, due to atmospheric conditions you can often get a mirage on the water and see objects that are below the horizon, I suspect this is not the case.
So, if you are looking for a wreck and this is your data, get a topographical map and first find the elevation of the shore. Secondly, what kind of a ship are you looking for? Any ideas what the deck height is? Can you find a ship of similar lines?
Sounds like a lot of work but if you want to find you must seek and this is how to reduce your search area. Best of luck!
Scott
: A written victum report from a shipwreck I was researching states "we could see land if it weren't for the snow." I was wondering if anyone knew how far a person can usually see in the Great Lakes from the deck of a large ship and how this distance is affected by weather beyond the obvious. For instance, if they faintly thought they could see shore, would this mean they were closer than they'd be in good weather. This, in my case, might help position this wreck.