In February 1933, the US Navy steamship Ramapo encountered a storm enroute to Ma
ID: 1692233 • Letter: I
Question
In February 1933, the US Navy steamship Ramapo encountered a storm enroute to Manila from San Diego. The sea swells were up to 15 metres. On the morning of 7th February the ship encountered a gigantic wave. It came from behind and almost swamped the Ramapo. The height of the wave was reliably measured as 34 metres – almost as tall as an 11-storey building!Explain how this huge wave was created even though the waves the ship had encountered before and after this event were only a maximum of 15 metres high.
Explanation / Answer
Here, there was a simple case of wave interference. Let us consider two waves of 15 meters each. They can interact at any angle, and combine to produce waves of larger sizes. When L1 = 15 meters, L2 = 15 meters Maximum height = root (15^2 + 15^2 + 2x15x15) = 30 meters Plus, when the waves break on the sides of the ship, they gain potential energy which can make them go even higher. Therefore, the height of 34 meters is attainable for the sea waves