Please can can you provide any information regarding the "rip tides"
prevalent in the waters offshore South-east Trinidad. I am managing an
offshore project (laying flexible pipe between oil platforms from a
dynamically postioned vessel) and the operation is frequently hampered
by a series of these rip tides at speeds in excess of 3 knots.
Occasionally we get warning of their approach on the radar screen but
unfortunatly, not always. Futhermore three of
more of these can occur simultaneously from different directions.
Locals tell me that it will get worse according to the phase of the
moon. I have been searching the web to find information about their
cause and predictibility, but without luck. Can you help? |
Request for Question Clarification by
umiat-ga
on
07 Oct 2003 15:06 PDT
Hello Steve,
Have you contacted any government agencies in Trinidad that might
have the information? If so, please let me know. I have an email out
right now for one possible source of rip-tide information. If they
cannot point me to a source, or do not have the information
themselves, I admit that internet resources do look meager. I have
seen reference to the rip tides in the Columbus Channel but no mention
of their predictability.
I will keep you informed.
umiat
|
Clarification of Question by
steveshepp-ga
on
07 Oct 2003 15:40 PDT
Hi,
The governmental agencies here are not exactly a source of
information!! The oil companies down here claim that they have no
documented information on the phenomenum. Thet are making noises about
funding something but I suspect that will never see the light of day!
The folk down here recognise it as something peculiar to this region.
I have worked at various locations around the world and never seen
anything like this before.
Regards
Steve
|
Request for Question Clarification by
umiat-ga
on
07 Oct 2003 17:57 PDT
Steve,
I have located a service that is described as follows:
"Users can generate statistical tidal information or time series for
any location of interest through an easy accessible and interactive
interface. Time series of tidal height, tidal current speed or current
direction are available at a ten-minute intervals, starting from a
user specified time/date, and cover a full tidal cycle of four weeks.
Statistical information consists of histograms (tidal height and
current speed), and of scatter diagrams (such as current speed versus
current direction). All information can be viewed on screen and
downloaded for further processing."
Although I did not know the precise latitude and longitude, the demo
allowed me to come very close to pinpointing the southeast coast of
Trinidad and the Columbus Channel.
Do you think a service like the one described would provide enough
information to give you more predictable information concerning
riptides? If you would like to investigate the site and determine
whether it will work for you, I can post it as an answer.
* If you find that it does not provide enough information to help
you, I will be happy to have the editors withdraw the answer.
I am also awaiting responses to several emails, but have no idea if,
or when, I will get a response.
Let me know what you think!
umiat
|
Request for Question Clarification by
umiat-ga
on
08 Oct 2003 07:13 PDT
Steve,
I have received a very promising reply from an individual connected
with the service I described above. He has provided several options
which might work for you using a combination of their in-house tools
to more precisely predict when these unusual tidal currents will
occur. They are willing to work closely with you to provide some help.
Let me know if this option is of interest and I will provide contact
details and further information from his email. It will be far more
efficient for you to contact this individual directly and work out the
best plan for your particular operation.
umiat
|
Clarification of Question by
steveshepp-ga
on
08 Oct 2003 10:21 PDT
Hi,
thanks for your efforts. Please supply the contact info and I'll get
in touch with the guy.
Best wishes
Steve
|
