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2 months ago
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From 73ft waves off the coast of Portugal to square waves in the Aegean Sea, several strange waves have left viewers baffled through the years.
But the latest wave uncovered off the coast of Australia might be the most unusual one yet.
Surfers exploring a secret location somewhere off the coast of Australia stumbled across the bizarre phenomenon.
Aerial footage shows water approaching from four different angles in the middle of the ocean, before explosively meeting in the middle.
Chris Whitey, who first discovered it, described it as 'the wave that shouldn't exist'.
'25+ years hunting the wildest slabs on Earth — and then we found THE THING. Impossible shape. Impossible power. 100% real,' he explained on Instagram.
The footage has baffled viewers, with thousands flocking to the comments on Instagram and YouTube.
'I literally though it was Ai, unbelievable piece of reef,' one user wrote, while another added: 'Because the ocean isn't scary enough, here's two random waves smacking each other in the middle of nowhere.'
Aerial footage shows water approaching from four different angles, before explosively meeting in the middle
Mr Whitey first stumbled across the wave more than a decade ago at a location he's keeping a secret.
He spotted waves swirling from every angle, before meeting and breaking into a huge pillar of water, stretching more than 40 metres into the sky.
'The very first time I ever laid eyes on it, I wasn't filming, I just had my still camera. We just randomly ended up there,' he explained in a video posted to Tension Movies' YouTube channel.
Ten years later, he returned to the site with his friend, Ben Allen, and was amazed to discover the wave still in action.
'The second I saw it, I was like "that's AI". Even though I saw it in real life, I didn't know it could look like that. But I can assure you, that's not AI,' Mr Whitey said.
After witnessing the strange wave himself, Mr Allen took the footage to Arnold Van Rooijen, an expert in coastal engineering at the University of Western Australia, to see if he could get his head around it.
'This is a pretty unique combination of the geomorphology of the reefs and the symmetry of the water depths,' Dr Van Rooijen said.
Dr Van Rooijen suggested that this strange wave would be a one–time occurrence.
Mr Whitey first stumbled across the wave more than a decade ago at a location he's keeping a secret. He spotted waves swirling around a rock from every angle, before meeting and breaking into a huge pillar of water
Why does the ocean have waves?
Waves are most commonly caused by wind.
Wind–driven waves, or surface waves, are created by the friction between wind and surface water.
As wind blows across the surface of the ocean or a lake, the continual disturbance creates a wave crest.
These types of waves are found globally across the open ocean and along the coast.
However, as the surfers witnessed, it appears to be a recurring feature.
Mr Allen joked: 'I'm pretty sure we captured it happening over and over and over again. He just didn't believe it – and he's meant to be one of the best oceanographers in Australia!'
The baffling footage has garnered huge attention on both YouTube and Instagram, with thousands of viewers flocking to the comments.
On YouTube, one wrote: 'Australians: hey look another thing that can kill ya.'
Another added: 'seeing the rock almost completely drain before two massive waves collide is insane.'
And one joked: 'You know that things launched all kinds of fish into the sky haha.'
Meanwhile, on Instagram, one viewer said: 'I can’t imagine any fan of the ocean not thoroughly enjoying this movie.'
The news comes shortly after Laura Crane, a British surfer from Devon, rode what could be the biggest wave ever attempted by a woman.
Ms Crane, 30, was competing at the Nazaré Big Wave Challenge in Portugal on Saturday when she took on the monstrous wall of water.
The Guinness World Records are currently assessing her latest efforts.
Maya Gabeira of Brazil holds the women's record at 73½ft (22.4m) wave at Nazaré in February 2020, but Ms Crane is confident her wave is taller.
Ms Crane told the Times her jet ski driver warned her it was going to 'be a bomb' while he released her onto the wave going about 30mph.
She described the experience as 'flying'.
WHAT CAUSES TSUNAMIS?
A tsunami, sometimes called a tidal wave or a seismic sea wave, is a series of giant waves that are created by a disturbance in the ocean.
The disturbance could be a landslide, a volcanic eruption, an earthquake or a meteorite; the culprit is most often an earthquake.
If the landslide or earthquake triggering the tsunami occurs nearby the shore, inhabitants could see its effects almost immediately.
The first wave of the tsunami can arrive within minutes, before a government or other institution has time to issue a warning.
Areas that are closer to sea level have a higher risk of being affected by the waves.
Researchers have found that a layer of the remains of microscopic organisms at the bottom of the ocean can cause tsunamis (file photo)
Those less than 25 feet from sea level are the most dangerous.
The cause of death most frequently associated with tsunamis is drowning. Additional hazards include drinking water contamination, fires and flooding.
Initial tsunami warnings are usually based on seismic information only.
Inhabitants of coastal areas that might be exposed to a tsunami are encouraged to follow evacuation routes in the event that they receive a tsunami warning.
They should seek higher ground or move inland immediately to get away from the ocean.
