He must have been surprised.
Imagine being on watch on your own in the middle of the night, your mates nodding off in the tent and bored with just seeing water, water, water the whole day.
Then something catches your eye - what was that? You blink - no moon, only stars. Surely there are no GREEN stars, are there?
But you see it again! They say people lose it out there on the water sometimes and you do a system check: Yes, I'm awake. Ears working, eyes okay.
Yet, you're seeing green lights - 260 nautical miles away from land!
*************
In the morning Yuri shared his experience with the team and they decided to check it out, sending in the trimaran's coordinates at the time and recommending that the NSRI be contacted for more information.
Tempest phoned Brad - the NSRI team leader who had organised the boat's escort into Hout Bay. He recommended consulting MRCC - the Marine Rescue Control Center in Cape Town.
Outcome:
Ascencion Island is a British Military Airbase - and the airfield is called Wideawake Airfield :)
The Air Force often conduct maneuvers over the ocean and they typically use green flares since these are easily observed against water at night. According to the MRCC the trimaran crew can expect to see more such activity untill they leave the area.
Images: Google Earth
***********************
The team was clearly relieved to hear the explanation provided by MRCC: they had been worried that the green flashes came from a vessel that was in trouble at sea. Typically, though, smoke and other emergency signals carried on board are orange and red. One should always check, though: In a distress situation, one may be reduced to using the witch's green smoke left over from last year's Halloween!
**********************
Follow-up - Useful to know: A green flare indicates "Safe Now". In rescue operations, rescuers who find the missing party would send up a green flare to inform other rescuers that the missing person/s had been found and that they are okay.
It seems also that GREEN RESCUE LASER FLARE BEACONS are becoming more popular as part of a yachts emergency equipment although they are not officially recognised as such and quite expensive to purchase.
Imagine being on watch on your own in the middle of the night, your mates nodding off in the tent and bored with just seeing water, water, water the whole day.
Then something catches your eye - what was that? You blink - no moon, only stars. Surely there are no GREEN stars, are there?
But you see it again! They say people lose it out there on the water sometimes and you do a system check: Yes, I'm awake. Ears working, eyes okay.
Yet, you're seeing green lights - 260 nautical miles away from land!
In the morning Yuri shared his experience with the team and they decided to check it out, sending in the trimaran's coordinates at the time and recommending that the NSRI be contacted for more information.
Tempest phoned Brad - the NSRI team leader who had organised the boat's escort into Hout Bay. He recommended consulting MRCC - the Marine Rescue Control Center in Cape Town.
Outcome:
Ascencion Island is a British Military Airbase - and the airfield is called Wideawake Airfield :)
The Air Force often conduct maneuvers over the ocean and they typically use green flares since these are easily observed against water at night. According to the MRCC the trimaran crew can expect to see more such activity untill they leave the area.
Images: Google Earth
***********************
The team was clearly relieved to hear the explanation provided by MRCC: they had been worried that the green flashes came from a vessel that was in trouble at sea. Typically, though, smoke and other emergency signals carried on board are orange and red. One should always check, though: In a distress situation, one may be reduced to using the witch's green smoke left over from last year's Halloween!
**********************
Follow-up - Useful to know: A green flare indicates "Safe Now". In rescue operations, rescuers who find the missing party would send up a green flare to inform other rescuers that the missing person/s had been found and that they are okay.
It seems also that GREEN RESCUE LASER FLARE BEACONS are becoming more popular as part of a yachts emergency equipment although they are not officially recognised as such and quite expensive to purchase.
Hello Karin,
ReplyDeleteThere may be another source of a green flare in that area but not from Ascencion Isle,once when closing the coast of Brasil,we saw a green flare,well I did,Dennis,my skipper and boats owner (1977) decided I was seeing things,then said ok,lets have a look,it was about 2am? I really did see it.
We had to change course for the spot I had indicated,Dennis went below,then a while later shot back up clutching a copy of Chapmans Piloting,stop he shouted,its a Brasilian Navy Submarine on practise! we changed course and saw nothing more.
Regards
Roy McBride