Qattarra Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 ....how much of this is caused by man, how much is natural? HERE'S SOMETHING WE'LL NEVER SEE.........WHIPPED OCEAN........AMAZING! Suddenly the shoreline north of Sydney were transformed into the Cappuccino Coast . Foam swallowed an entire beach and half the nearby buildings, including the lo cal lifeguards' centre, in a freak display of nature at Yamba in New South Wales . One minute a group of teenage surfers were waiting to catch a wave, the next they were swallowed up in a giant bubble bath. The foam was so light that they could puff it out of their hands and watch it float away. Boy in the bubble bath: Tom Woods, 12, emerges from the clouds of foam after deciding that surfing was not an option It stretched for 30 miles out into the Pacific in a phenomenon not seen at the beach for more than three decades. Scientists explain that the foam is created by impurities in the ocean, such as salts, chemicals, dead plants, decomposed fish and excretions from seaweed. All are churned up together by powerful currents which cause the water to form bubbles. These bubbles stick to each other as they are carried below the surface by the current towards the shore As a wave starts to form on the surface, the motion of the water causes the bubbles to swirl upwards and, massed together, they become foam. The foam 'surfs' towards shore until the wave 'crashes', tossing the foam into the air. Whitewash: The foam was so thick it came all the way up to the surf club 'It's the same effect you get when you whip up a milk shake in a blender,' explains a marine expert. 'The more powerful the swirl, the more foam you create on the surface and the lighter it becomes.' In this case, storms off the New South Wales Coast and further north off Queensland had created a huge disturbance in the ocean, hitting a stretch of water where there was a particularly high amount of the substances which form into bubbles. As for 12-year-old beach goer Tom Woods, who has been surfing since he was two, riding a wave was out of the question. 'Me and my mates just spent the afternoon leaping about in that stuff,' he said. 'It was quite cool to touch and it was really weird. It was like clouds of air - you could hardly feel it.' Children play among all the foam which has been whipped up by cyclonic conditions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 I saw this a while ago, pretty neat. I wonder how often it happens. I don't think I'd want to play in it though. Looks a bit gross :boxed: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackMumba Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 Oh, that's too cool!! Would have loved to have seen it in real time though! :thumbs: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parachromis1 Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 I wanna play in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Endugu Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 Protein Skimmer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharuq1 Posted April 7, 2009 Report Share Posted April 7, 2009 blegh, like playing in a giant skimmer :boxed: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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