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Old 01-18-2010, 08:51 PM
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ricki ricki is offline
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Default Seabreezes

Someone wanted to learn more about sea breezes in Florida. Here's what went up ...

Quote:
Originally Posted by RickI
Here's an interesting point for you Joe, in SE Florida, seabreezes don't bring that much rideable wind. They do at times, just not as often as on the west coast it seems. The relative bathymetry and water temp of the Gulf vs. the Florida Current/Gulfstream factor into things. The summer variety are often weak, below more favorable riding wind speeds. In the cooler months, they can create sideshore rideable winds when the predominant regional wind is offshore. When the sun starts to set that nice side shore wind can shift in minutes dead offshore. Easy way to lose a board.

Anyway, how do seabreezes work? There is an easy answer however predicting them can be a lot trickier as you probably know. Wikipedia does a nice job describing them at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_breeze

They even touch on Seabreeze fronts or thermal squalls so common in "normal" (what are those), summers on both the east and west coasts of Florida. With a normal thermal squall, evidenced by a ten mile high stack of looming cumnimb clouds, the wind increases as they drift closer to the ocean. So, at around 12 or 1, the breeze starts building to better speeds around 3 to 4, sometimes even after 5. Trouble is, the lightning hazard goes up as the wind increases. Tampa is supposed to have more lightning problems than we do in the SE. Still, we've had some nasty accidents, often in May and June with severe lighting strikes miles ahead of the thermal squall. Aside from lightning, squalls come with thermal squalls. The wind gets really good,. then all hell breaks loose and the wind dies. As I recall this contributed to that kid getting yanked up to the power lines and dropped on the steel traffic rail in Dunedin, FL a while back. Then there was a guy who was badly concussed on this coast, lost his memory in a summer squall years back.

You can go to a place like Cabarete along a high island subject to trades. The wind convection cycle can increase trades during the day and oppose them at night. Had them big time, strong too in Egypt. Strong differential in hot and cold, with deep, relative cool waters near shore, arid land bordered by mountains inland.

A seabreeze tutorial for temperate conditions off the central east coast:
http://marine.rutgers.edu/cool/seabreeze/tutorial.html

Here's something devoted to Florida seabreezes with focus on the squall side of things:
http://www.weathervine.com/florida/seabreeze/
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