They are common on the coast. They use the heating of the land to provide the
instability and updrafts. Its certainly very common in New England for line
squalls to go through at night - it only take a cold front traveling over heated
up land. They would lose some of their punch over cold water.

Jax is just trying to claim that a few offshore rides makes him a weather
expert.



"Ken Heaton" wrote in message
...
I live in small coastal city, and for 15 years I had an apartment 2 blocks
from the waterfront of the harbour. This would be about 3 miles up the
harbour from the Atlantic coast itself. I remember a night a thunderstorm
woke me up as it put on its light show overhead. Then it hit the radio
station across the street. That was spectacular. And deafening. It was a
couple of days before they were back on the air.
Are thunderstorms uncommon at night? Seems around here they are as common
during the night as during the day.
--
Ken Heaton & Anne Tobin
Cape Breton Island, Canada
kenheaton AT ess wye dee DOT eastlink DOT ca

"JAXAshby" wrote in message
...
I have never seen a thunderstorm offshore at night, either, but have seen
them
on land (way inland) on more than a couple occassions.

Hmm.. I have rarely seen T-storms at night, course my eyes are not that
good
as some.

Foregoing Vitriol, raving and puffery deleted..

As part of keeping your log with regular observations at say even bells.
SOP in Lioness is to plot position and sweep the radar to look for
vessels
and thunderclouds.

With 48 mile range you do get a good warning. A cell phone that gave you
a
message on weather would be nice, yet does not work offshore.


Course if all you do is sail in category 4 water it is no biggie.

Sheldon

On Thu, 29 Jan 2004 22:21:17 -0400, "Ken Heaton" wrote:

/// I remember a night a thunderstorm
woke me up as it put on its light show overhead. Then it hit the radio
station across the street. That was spectacular. And deafening. It was a
couple of days before they were back on the air.
Are thunderstorms uncommon at night? Seems around here they are as common
during the night as during the day.

A fact that stays in mind for no good reason, after reading a classic
atmospheric electricity monograph:

There is a peak time which is synchronized around the world, for
lightning strikes.

I suppose that depending on the longitude, the time for
lightning shows could well be at night....

Brian W

On Thu, 29 Jan 2004 22:21:17 -0400, "Ken Heaton" wrote:

/// I remember a night a thunderstorm
woke me up as it put on its light show overhead. Then it hit the radio
station across the street. That was spectacular. And deafening. It was a
couple of days before they were back on the air.
Are thunderstorms uncommon at night? Seems around here they are as common
during the night as during the day.

A fact that stays in mind for no good reason, after reading a classic
atmospheric electricity monograph:

There is a peak time which is synchronized around the world, for
lightning strikes.

I suppose that depending on the longitude, the time for
lightning shows could well be at night....

Brian W

''cuz they don't happen at night, or 'cuz if one happened at night I would be
off watch and thus asleep below?

JAXAshby wrote:
I have never seen a thunderstorm offshore at night,

And there's a very good reason, which we can all easily guess

DSK

''cuz they don't happen at night, or 'cuz if one happened at night I would be
off watch and thus asleep below?

JAXAshby wrote:
I have never seen a thunderstorm offshore at night,

And there's a very good reason, which we can all easily guess

DSK

Jax is just trying to claim that a few offshore rides makes him a weather
expert.

no, I wasn't. I was just saying that -- in agreement with another poster --
that I had not seen thunderstorms at sea at night, that I had -- perhaps in
disagreement -- seen such thunderstorms at night way inland.

Jax is just trying to claim that a few offshore rides makes him a weather
expert.

no, I wasn't. I was just saying that -- in agreement with another poster --
that I had not seen thunderstorms at sea at night, that I had -- perhaps in
disagreement -- seen such thunderstorms at night way inland.

Ever been to Lake Norman? I have, I used to work a few miles from
there. Do you know anything about the terrain?

Eric

(JAXAshby) wrote in message ...
eric, that is a newspaper story, and has much to do with what actually happened
as any other news story. Weather just does not and can not develop that
quickly. Besides you can tell the reporter was fictionalizing when s/he
slipped in that part about

Few of the participants
noticed an area of dark sky emerging behind them

you also can tell that by

blasted by a wall of water

huh? what "wall of water" is that?

most of the rest of the rhetoric in the story is the reporter "adding drama",
as the phrase goes in journalism school.

as far as the rest of that goes, one day a few years ago four people died in a
thunderstorm in the waters I normally sail when a thunderstorm came through
packing 90+ knots of wind. Many boats on the water damaged.

My boat was not. Why? because I didnt go out that day knowing full well the
chances of very high winds. I expected the high winds about 2:00, and they hit
about 4:00.

This ain't rocket science. Those dark clouds mean *something* and if they are
traveling to the north of you you might be in for a bit of trouble. Plan for
it.

And being out in potential storm conditions in a lightweight racing boat means
you have to keep your eyes open.

buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, if it makes you feel better carry a baby blanket
and a binky.

The storm
On May 6, 1989 around 1:00 p.m., 93 sailboats were underway in a large
regatta on Lake Norman. By all accounts it was a "bluebird day" -- no
clouds, medium-heavy breeze (12-18 knots). A perfect day for a
sailboat race.

While the NOAA forecast had called for possible thunderstorms late
that afternoon, no one expected severe weather.

At about 12:30, NOAA issued a "microburst warning" for the area. By
then, the regatta was well underway. Everyone was watching their sail
trim and their competitors.

Most of the fleet was on a long down-wind leg. Few of the participants
noticed an area of dark sky emerging behind them. Ten minutes later,
the fleet was blasted by a wall of water and winds officially clocked
at 64 – 78 knots.

* Two sailors drowned.
* Nineteen sailors were swept overboard and had to be rescued.
* Four boats sank.
* Sixty-two boats were substantially damaged.

On Lake Norman -- a nice scenic inland lake (sound familiar??), two
and one-half hours from SML.

Survivors described the conditions thusly:

* "A wall of gray—30 feet above the water, roaring towards us."
* "The lake itself seemed to be lifted from its bed."
* "A mixture of lake water, rain, and hail blew like a firehose."
* "Seven foot waves broke over the banks."

One sailor, suddenly aware of the storm, tried to drop his sails, but
the sudden heavy pressure locked the halyards. He was knocked down
with shredded sails. Another sailor tried to secure his companionway
during a knockdown, but water was already pouring in the cabin. His
boat sank.

Many boats were either demasted or lost sails.

Ever been to Lake Norman? I have, I used to work a few miles from
there. Do you know anything about the terrain?

Eric

(JAXAshby) wrote in message ...
eric, that is a newspaper story, and has much to do with what actually happened
as any other news story. Weather just does not and can not develop that
quickly. Besides you can tell the reporter was fictionalizing when s/he
slipped in that part about

Few of the participants
noticed an area of dark sky emerging behind them

you also can tell that by

blasted by a wall of water

huh? what "wall of water" is that?

most of the rest of the rhetoric in the story is the reporter "adding drama",
as the phrase goes in journalism school.

as far as the rest of that goes, one day a few years ago four people died in a
thunderstorm in the waters I normally sail when a thunderstorm came through
packing 90+ knots of wind. Many boats on the water damaged.

My boat was not. Why? because I didnt go out that day knowing full well the
chances of very high winds. I expected the high winds about 2:00, and they hit
about 4:00.

This ain't rocket science. Those dark clouds mean *something* and if they are
traveling to the north of you you might be in for a bit of trouble. Plan for
it.

And being out in potential storm conditions in a lightweight racing boat means
you have to keep your eyes open.

buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, if it makes you feel better carry a baby blanket
and a binky.

The storm
On May 6, 1989 around 1:00 p.m., 93 sailboats were underway in a large
regatta on Lake Norman. By all accounts it was a "bluebird day" -- no
clouds, medium-heavy breeze (12-18 knots). A perfect day for a
sailboat race.

While the NOAA forecast had called for possible thunderstorms late
that afternoon, no one expected severe weather.

At about 12:30, NOAA issued a "microburst warning" for the area. By
then, the regatta was well underway. Everyone was watching their sail
trim and their competitors.

Most of the fleet was on a long down-wind leg. Few of the participants
noticed an area of dark sky emerging behind them. Ten minutes later,
the fleet was blasted by a wall of water and winds officially clocked
at 64 – 78 knots.

* Two sailors drowned.
* Nineteen sailors were swept overboard and had to be rescued.
* Four boats sank.
* Sixty-two boats were substantially damaged.

On Lake Norman -- a nice scenic inland lake (sound familiar??), two
and one-half hours from SML.

Survivors described the conditions thusly:

* "A wall of gray—30 feet above the water, roaring towards us."
* "The lake itself seemed to be lifted from its bed."
* "A mixture of lake water, rain, and hail blew like a firehose."
* "Seven foot waves broke over the banks."

One sailor, suddenly aware of the storm, tried to drop his sails, but
the sudden heavy pressure locked the halyards. He was knocked down
with shredded sails. Another sailor tried to secure his companionway
during a knockdown, but water was already pouring in the cabin. His
boat sank.

Many boats were either demasted or lost sails.

you're right, eric. on lake norman thunderstorms form in less than 8 minutes,
in absolutely clear skies, with no warning whatsoever.

but *if* what you say is true, eric, what good would a cell phone radar do you?
Huh?


Ever been to Lake Norman? I have, I used to work a few miles from
there. Do you know anything about the terrain?

Eric

(JAXAshby) wrote in message
...
eric, that is a newspaper story, and has much to do with what actually
happened
as any other news story. Weather just does not and can not develop that
quickly. Besides you can tell the reporter was fictionalizing when s/he
slipped in that part about

Few of the participants
noticed an area of dark sky emerging behind them

you also can tell that by

blasted by a wall of water

huh? what "wall of water" is that?

most of the rest of the rhetoric in the story is the reporter "adding
drama",
as the phrase goes in journalism school.

as far as the rest of that goes, one day a few years ago four people died
in a
thunderstorm in the waters I normally sail when a thunderstorm came through
packing 90+ knots of wind. Many boats on the water damaged.

My boat was not. Why? because I didnt go out that day knowing full well
the
chances of very high winds. I expected the high winds about 2:00, and they
hit
about 4:00.

This ain't rocket science. Those dark clouds mean *something* and if they
are
traveling to the north of you you might be in for a bit of trouble. Plan
for
it.

And being out in potential storm conditions in a lightweight racing boat
means
you have to keep your eyes open.

buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, if it makes you feel better carry a baby
blanket
and a binky.

The storm
On May 6, 1989 around 1:00 p.m., 93 sailboats were underway in a large
regatta on Lake Norman. By all accounts it was a "bluebird day" -- no
clouds, medium-heavy breeze (12-18 knots). A perfect day for a
sailboat race.

While the NOAA forecast had called for possible thunderstorms late
that afternoon, no one expected severe weather.

At about 12:30, NOAA issued a "microburst warning" for the area. By
then, the regatta was well underway. Everyone was watching their sail
trim and their competitors.

Most of the fleet was on a long down-wind leg. Few of the participants
noticed an area of dark sky emerging behind them. Ten minutes later,
the fleet was blasted by a wall of water and winds officially clocked
at 64 – 78 knots.

* Two sailors drowned.
* Nineteen sailors were swept overboard and had to be rescued.
* Four boats sank.
* Sixty-two boats were substantially damaged.

On Lake Norman -- a nice scenic inland lake (sound familiar??), two
and one-half hours from SML.

Survivors described the conditions thusly:

* "A wall of gray—30 feet above the water, roaring towards us."
* "The lake itself seemed to be lifted from its bed."
* "A mixture of lake water, rain, and hail blew like a firehose."
* "Seven foot waves broke over the banks."

One sailor, suddenly aware of the storm, tried to drop his sails, but
the sudden heavy pressure locked the halyards. He was knocked down
with shredded sails. Another sailor tried to secure his companionway
during a knockdown, but water was already pouring in the cabin. His
boat sank.

Many boats were either demasted or lost sails.